Another Life by a_silver_story | Part 21
Apr. 29th, 2010 05:11 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
a_silver_storyTitle: Another Life
Chapter: 21 | ??
Characters: Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
a_silver_story
Genre Alternate Universe, Romance
Rating: NC-17 just to be safe.
Warnings: A bit of angst, and some tentacles and d/c in the future.
Disclaimer: If I owned anything in this, I'd be a rich rich rich bitch. However, I am not a rich rich rich bitch so you may all, therefore, assume I own nothing. Which I don't. It all belongs RTD and the BBC, in case any of you didn't know.
Summary: Ianto finds himself heartbroken and alone, but eventually learns that no matter what point in Captain Jack Harkness' life he finds himself, they will always fall in love.
Torchwood Index/Masterlist
First Part
Another Life
Another Life XXI
Ianto stared around Rhys ' flat.
Streamers and balloons were crowded into the corners, the coffee table creaked under bowls of crisps, nuts, biscuits and nibbles and the cake Big Jack and Little Jack had ruined three lots of eggs, flour, sugar and butter to make sat proudly on the end-table, thick, blue icing dripping down the sides and "Happy Sixth Birthday, Jack!" iced on in yellow. There were little tidal marks in the sides of the cake, where Big and Little fingers had been dragged through to steal bits of unset icing or the buttercream filling.
Rhys was bustling around in the dining room, making sure the table was properly set for all the guests and that the food would be ready to just heat up when it was needed. The party games were all waiting to be played, and there had been a special corner kept clear for Giacomo's presents to go.
Ianto set down the gift from himself and Jack - the wrapped box containing the coat - and put an over-excited Shirley in his old wardrobe.
"Shush, you," he muttered, stroking her head through the bars as she yapped at him. She was wearing a blue ribbon bow around her neck, the knot settled on the back of her head. "You've got plenty of food, plenty of water. All you have to do is stay quiet for me, okay?"
She yapped twice, then retreated into her cage. Ianto left the wardrobe door open a crack so that she'd still have some light, and went to help Rhys with the last-minute preparations before Giacomo arrived with Jack.
~*~*~*~
"You're late."
Jack gave Ianto a very sheepish look. "It was my fault," he admitted as Giacomo scowled up at him.
"He 'couldn't get his hair right'!" he mimicked, clearly disgruntled about being late to his own birthday party.
Ianto ruffled his hair. "You're here now," he sighed. "that's what matters - and only Annabel is here at the moment anyway."
The Captain was taking off his big, black coat, hanging it carefully. Ianto folded his arms, and raised an eyebrow. "Your hair doesn't look any different to what it usually does."
"Well ... I couldn't tell him what really took so long in shower, could I?" he pointed out.
Ianto felt his eyes widen slightly. "Right ... well ... ahem. Kiddies party, shall we?"
Giacomo was already eyeing the few presents in the corner greedily, and he and Annabel were soon crouched by them, deciphering the labels and shaking boxes. "I know what this one is," Giacomo grinned, pointing at the box from Ianto and Jack. "Can I open it? I already know what it is!"
"You can open your presents after everybody's got here and we've all eaten," Ianto told him, and was met with a groan.
"But I know what it is! There's not even a point to it being wrapped!"
Ianto stamped on the Captain's foot as he sniggered beside him, cutting him off. Jack cleared his throat. "Ianto spent a long time measuring out ribbon and wrapping paper for that present, so you'll be patient and do as you're told," he chastised, face straight. Giacomo wandered off with Annabel to sulk and do some drawing, and Jack turned to Ianto in search of approval. Ianto simply rolled his eyes.
"You're as bad as he is, you know that?"
Jack grinned. "Wanna see how many eclairs I can fit in my mouth without dying?"
"I'm guessing ... one? Any more and I'd be the one killing yo -"
His sentence was cut off by Jack shoving him into the wall and pressing their mouths together with no warning. Ianto yelped quietly, then relaxed against him and fell into rhythm, sliding his hand up over Jack's back, shoulder and entangling his fingers in the short hair at the back of his head. Jack pulled back, and Ianto couldn't help but smile dopily. "What was that for?"
"Felt like it," grinned Jack, just as dopily.
"WOAH! Giacomo - not on Annabel's clothes!"
Jack and Ianto came back to themselves, glancing over and finding that Annabel had allowed Giacomo to try and draw on the back of her t-shirt with a felt-tip pen. Ianto groaned - he would probably be the one explaining to her mother why the pretty blue top was ruined and replacing it. He pushed himself out of the space between Jack and the wall, and was cut off mid-stride when a knock sounded on the door. He sighed, and went to answer it.
"Hello? Have you come on your own?"
A tiny pink girl with purple patterns over her temples and down her neck, shoulders and arms, black hair and a green dress stood grinning up at him with bright, white teeth and twinkling eyes. "Yessir! I walked alllll the way by myself!"
"Really? Aren't you ... five?"
"Six! It's not very dangerous. I know a lot of people."
Ianto decided not to argue with the two-and-a-half foot pink girl offering him a sparkly gift bag. "What's your name?" he asked, moving aside to let her in and taking the bag.
"Ophelia," she said, and tossed her hair importantly. "Where's Giaca - why's the Captain here?" she squeaked, then hid behind her hands as she flushed a rich purple.
Ianto bit his lip to stop himself laughing (though ... give it fifteen years and he'd be guiding her back out the door ....), and ushered her toward Annabel and Giacomo.
"Hiya, 'Phelia!" grinned Giacomo, tugging her hand so that she plopped down next to him. "What's wrong?" he asked, noticing her slowly receding purple hue.
"You never said the Captain would be here!" she exclaimed, wide-eyed, and Ianto held in a chortle.
"He's my Dad!" Giacomo grinned. "Why wouldn't he be here?"
She squeaked, and glanced over at the Captain trying to pick at the nibbles on the table that hadn't been unwrapped yet while avoiding getting his hands slapped away by Rhys. With a handful of peanuts he turned around, and Ianto jerked his head at the new arrival. He grinned in her once-again-purple direction, and she did her best to maintain her composure, picking at the green flowers on her dress.
Jack gave Ianto a very smug smile, clearly proud of himself.
A few minutes later, the door went again, and Ianto found another girl, about seven years old with long brown hair wearing a bowler hat and neon pink dress standing behind it. "I'm Jezbie," she smiled sweetly, flicking her hair. "This is Giacomo's party, right?"
"Come in, come in ...." Ianto ushered, and soon she was sat with Opehlia, Annabel and Giacomo. Opehlia pointed out the Captain loitering by the nibbles to her, and she had a similar reaction.
Oh dear God, Ianto though as his inner voice sighed. They're not even pre-pubescent. Pre-pre-pre-pubescent, maybe?
He also considered the fact that the last two guests had walked to the party on their own. Were he and Jack too over-protective of Giacomo? Was he old enough to walk from one flat to another? Was he old enough to walk from their flat to Rhys' on his own? It's not like he had roads to cross, or strangers to look out for. Not really ....
Two more guests arrived, and Ianto was noticing a pattern.
They were all girls.
He bit his lip.
While the concept of 'straight' wasn't really a concept any more, he did wonder if Giacomo might prefer girls. Or ... was it boys who surrounded themselves with girls who tended to like boys? Now Ianto was just confusing himself. After a moment of consideration, Ianto remembered that it didn't matter, and that it was just his ancient and ingrained attitudes trying to figure out a label.
Giacomo had never really talked about any of his friends, Ianto realised. He scratched his chin, watching Yukiko (who was yellow with blue lips and nails) and Lori (who was human, with caramel skin and bright, bright blue eyes) beginning a game of Blind Man's Bluff with the already present guests.
Ianto had been looking forward to seeing their reaction to spotting Jack, but it appeared the Captain had wandered off somewhere having been banished from the nibbles table and banned from the kitchen.
"Rhys?" Ianto called, and Rhys appeared by the presents, having been trying to sort them into something that didn't look like a haphazard heap.
"Mmhmm?"
"Where's Jack?"
"Erm ... your room, I think," he said. "I banned him from everywhere with food, so he's probably with the ... y'know ... secret thing."
Ianto nodded and thanked him, and slipped off to his room. He found Jack sat on his old, bare mattress cuddling Shirley and nuzzling her head with his nose.
"I hear you got banned from the nibbles table?" Ianto sighed, sitting next to him.
"Apparently eating the whole bowl of nuts was neither good for me or fair on the kids. It's unjust! Everyone knows how much Captain Jack Harkness loves nuts!" His eyes twinkled as he grinned at Ianto. "I love birthdays. Kiddies' birthdays. Always more effort into your kids' birthday than your own - and you always have more fun, too. And you get to play all the party games, and just ... be silly. Have fun."
Ianto stroked Shirley's head with his finger. "Just make sure you let the kids win at the games, yeah?" he suggested cheekily. "Now come on back out - I wanna see if you can make the two new arrivals at the party change colour. Make sure you put Shirley in her cage properly."
Ianto led Jack back into the living room, and was satisfied to see Yukiko turn orange and Lori turn a deep shade of pink, as well as Ophelia's purple and Jezbie's red. Both Annabel and Giacomo gave them funny looks.
"We could make a rainbow ...." Jack muttered in Ianto's ear, his tone smug once again.
"It must be great being you," he replied, rolling his eyes.
Jack simply grinned, kissed his cheek, then went to go and join in the colouring-in session - Ianto was fairly certain that any second, one of the little girls was going to faint. Maybe Rhys might be up for a wager ....
"Sorry I'm late!" called a voice from the doorway. "Hallooooo!"
Rhys perked up. "Till!" he called back, grinning. "Come in ... come in ... nibbles?"
"Hey!" Jack glared. "I wasn't allowed nibbles!"
Rhys cleared his throat, and pulled Till toward the nibbles table.
Ianto was suddenly at a loss with what to do with himself, so started re-arranging balloons and sorting the gifts. There was a cacophony of laughter from the colouring corner of the room, and Ianto glanced over to spot Jack looking non-too-impressed with a line of black felt-tip that had found its way over his cheek when he'd attempted to sweep the hair out of his eyes. He pouted when he spotted Ianto trying not to laugh at him, and Ianto had to turn his back. He spotted Till loitering in the corner, and wandered over to chat.
"Hey," he smiled. "How're things?"
"Fine, Ianto. Just fine! And for you?"
"Erm ... a little rocky. Lawyers," he grimaced, pulling his face. Till laughed.
"Do you ... know anything about ... y'know ... the move?" she asked.
"What do you want to know?"
"Well ... I ... I don't ... want to end up with a stranger when ... it happens. Y'know?"
"Jack's publishing the lists tomorrow."
"I know ... but ... they're saying that the lists are final. There won't be enough time to rearrange."
"Knowing Jack, he played matchmaker and put you with Rhys," Ianto told her.
"Oh ...." Her face brightened up. "That's ... that's okay then! - are you sure?"
"I can check for you."
She nodded. "Just think ... this time next week there'll be five hundred less people here. It'll be ... empty."
"You might be in the first five hundred. Depends on your accommodation."
Till sighed. "I rejoin my timeline a few years. At least then I'll be treated like I matter."
Ianto sighed heavily, and tried not to stiffen too much when she slipped her arms around his middle and hugged him. He rested his cheek on her hair momentarily and squeezed her. "At least you were never so far from home, and at least you get to rejoin your timeline and see your family and friends again. You're bloody lucky, Till."
"Yeah," she agreed. "I always forget that ... y'know ... I've actually had it pretty easy compared."
They broke out of the hug.
"Tell me about your home?" she asked, and Ianto fidgeted minutely.
"Erm ... like what?"
"Rhys has told me some things," she smiled. "About Gwen, mainly, but who can blame him? And funny little stories about his friends, and about his transport job."
Ianto gave a small laugh.
"Do you miss home?"
"Of course I miss home. It's where my family are ... but ... I wouldn't change this. If I'd not come here ... look what I'd be missing out on!"
"Being herded out to work factory floors for next to nothing?"
"I have my own family. I never even thought I'd have that, and they mean more to me than anything."
"You must be an optimist."
"Until I came here I was a dire pessimist."
There was another knock on the door, and Ianto excused himself to go and answer it. He discovered a small blond boy scowling, stood in front of whom Ianto assumed was his father, and looking rather annoyed.
"Is this Giacomo's party?" the similarly blond man asked politely. Ianto nodded and stood aside with a smile to let them in. "Malcolm's been playing up a little today," he continued. "If he's naughty, just give me a call and I'll come and get him."
Malcolm's pout became twice as pronounced, and his scowl deepened. He said goodbye to his dad, and Ianto gave his petulant behaviour a raised eyebrow. "Carry on behaving like that, and I'll not bother to call your father and you can spend the entire party in the corner watching everyone else having fun, playing games and eating cake until home time."
Ianto vaguely wondered if it was acceptable to offer such a punishment to another person's child, but he wasn't having anyone ruining Giacomo's party.
The pout vanished. "Sorry, Mr. Harkness," Malcolm said sheepishly. "I'll behave, I promise."
"Mmm. Of course you will - and it's Mr. Jones."
"But you got married!"
"I kept my name," Ianto sniffed indignantly, and sent Malcolm off to colour. He watched as he approached the gaggle to say 'hello', spotted the Captain and turned a darker shade than even Ophelia had managed. He sat down primly, cross legged, unashamedly staring.
Ianto could almost hear Jack's thoughts.
Five out of five ... ahhhh yeah!
"Is everybody here?" Jack was asking the cluster of children. "Is it time for presents?"
They all chorused an excited 'yeahhh!', apart from Giacomo, who gave a very firm 'No!'.
Jack and the kids stared at him as if he was the strangest thing they'd ever seen.
"Daddy said after food!" he insisted, and Ianto felt his eyebrows pretty much hit the ceiling.
"Well ... Dad's saying 'now'," Jack pouted.
"But Daddy's in charge!"
Malcolm seemed almost offended by the admission. "The Captain's in charge!" he insisted, batting his eyes as she sidled closer to Jack. "That's why he's the Captain!"
The other overwhelmed children agreed, and Giacomo looked from face to face, bewildered. "But ... but ... in our house, Dad does what Daddy tells him or else!"
Ianto broke, and had to turn away. He was pretty sure Rhys and Till were sniggering by the nibbles - he was also pretty sure Rhys had a smudge of lipstick on his cheek.
Jack cleared his throat. "I say presents now," he said, and rose his gaze to Ianto, daring him to challenge his authority.
Ianto sighed dramatically. "Okay - but whatever the consequences may be, it will be the Captain's fault ...."
The kids cheered and Jack grinned, and they all settled in a circle as Ianto, Rhys and Till brought the presents over to set in the middle.
"I'm going to open ...." Little Jack contemplated. "... this one!"
He pulled the box from Jack and Ianto out of the middle of the stack, ignoring the others as they tumbled down. Ripping open the paper without a moment's thought for the perfect symmetry or artistry that Ianto had found himself stressing over, he yanked open the box and let out a squeal of delight. The girls all gasped as he pulled out his new coat, exactly the same as the Captain's but with 'G' embossed on the buttons, and slung it on.
Jack helped him with the fastenings and made him do a twirl, and Giacomo was practically jumping up and down on the spot with excitement. "I love it, I love it, I love it!" he grinned, and he gave Ianto a kiss and a hug before giving the Captain a cuddle, too. Rhys was grinning, as was Till, and Ianto did his best not to beam like a madman at Giacomo's happiness.
He plopped back down, and pulled a random box toward him, ripping open the paper after reading the tag as quickly as he could. It was from Yukiko, the yellow and blue girl, and she had got him a plastic watch with a large digital clock face.
"Press this here," she instructed bossily. "It tells you what time, 'cuz I know you can't read it yet."
Giacomo flushed slightly.
"Don't worry, Jack!" Ophelia piped up. "I can't neither!"
Yukiko sighed and rolled her eyes dramatically.
Ianto cleared his throat. "Next present!" he declared, moving things along.
Giacomo picked up the gift bag Ophelia had arrived with, his rummaging in it only slightly marred by the new watch on his wrist. Ianto noted he'd put it on his right wrist rather than his left, despite being right-handed, as the Captain did.
From the bag, Giacomo produced a rather expensive-looking set of pencil crayons.
"They're better than wax crayons," Ophelia told him enthusiastically. "You have more control and stuff. You press hard and the colour goes better."
"I love them," Giacomo announced. "They're my favourite." He reached for the next gift, but was interrupted from getting into it by the sound of the door flying open. The group all turned to look, and Ianto rolled his eyes as he was forced to watch John Hart making a dramatic entrance two hours too early.
After stony 'hello's' on Ianto's part and warm greetings on the others, John settled himself next to Giacomo, admired his coat and soon found him clambering into his lap to open the rest of his presents.
Ianto gave a very, very meaningful look at Jack, and the Captain cleared his throat. "You're gonna give Captain Hart pins and needles, Giacomo. Sit on the carpet."
Giacomo pouted and did as he was told - the rest of the party guests minus Rhys, Till and Ianto all suddenly enamoured with the new arrival. Malcolm might have even been drooling.
It took Little Jack only fifteen minutes to work his way through his gifts. He got an easel, some paints, two 'How to Draw' books and a colouring book from Rhys and Till, as well as a set of paints and some paintbrushes; a strange sort of fedora hat from Jezbie; a 'How to Draw Dragons' book from Lori; a photo frame from Annabel and a matching scarf, hat and mittens-on-a-string from Malcolm.
Ianto quickly cleared away all the debris as another game of Blind Man's Bluff was beginning, and managed to corner John pretty efficiently.
"What the Hell are you doing here?" he hissed quietly.
"I was invited?" John reminded him.
"You're not invited for another two hours!"
"Calm down, Eye-Candy. You're gonna do yourself an injury."
Ianto had to breathe pretty deep and bite the inside of his mouth to stop himself snapping something unnecessary. "Just ... don't cause any trouble. Or start any riots. It's hard enough keeping my eye on Captain Harkness, never mind Harkness and Hart and the children."
"I'll be on my best behaviour," promised Hart, but there was a twinkle in his eye that Ianto couldn't trust. "Besides - Giacomo wants me here! - hey .... maybe I could jump forward a few birthdays ... say ... sixteen years old?"
Ianto felt like John had punched him in the gut. "You ... you ... you dare even touch him, and I'll fucking kill you."
"Hey!" smirked John. "Maybe you killing me is the reason why he comes back an- okay ... I don't like the look on your face. Seriously, Eye-Candy: I'm just theorising!"
Ianto stepped forward until he was in John's personal space, practically nose to nose. He kept his voice low and level, not even tremoring. "You do not joke. You do not 'theorise'. You most certainly do not come into our lives with the intent of ruining everything. And you know what, John? If you touch so much as a hair on that boy's head, I will kill you. Very slowly."
"I've heard that threat before," John reminded him.
"You honestly think I wouldn't?"
"I think 'Lil Baby Jack might get his insane streak from you."
"Ianto!"
Ianto's head snapped around, and he met Jack's unimpressed gaze.
"Word, please?"
Ianto glared at him, but brushed past John to get to his old bedroom. Jack followed him in, and waited for him to speak first. Ianto folded his arms and glared, resolutely waiting for Jack. The Captain gave in.
"Well?" he prompted.
"Well, what?"
"You were spoiling for a fight in there! I could smell the testosterone!"
Ianto snorted in disbelief.
"You're supposed to be the sensible one, Ianto! What the Hell were you thinking?"
Still glaring, Ianto shifted his weight from one leg to the other. "He threatened Giacomo."
Jack's expression changed in an instant. He turned on his heel. "I'm going to kill the wrinkly-faced motherfuck-"
His sentence was cut off by Ianto tugging the back of his shirt. "Jack!"
"What?"
"Just ...."
Ianto hesitated for a second, then sniggered. He let out a small laugh as Jack stared at him in confusion, then laughed more and more.
"Why are you laughing?" Jack demanded.
"No idea!" shrugged Ianto. He rested his forehead on Jack's shoulder. "Absolutely no idea."
He felt Jack's cheek rest on his hair, and arms wrapped around him and squeezed. "You're not normal, you aren't," Jack muttered fondly. "Don't ever change. Now tell me what John said."
"He was ... okay ... his threat was probably pretty empty. He insinuated travelling to the future to sleep with a sixteen-year-old Giacomo."
Ianto had to grab hold of Jack tightly again as he made to go back out to the party.
"I think he's just jealous of us," Ianto soothed, nuzzling the base of Jack's hairline. Jack growled darkly, but Ianto didn't quite pick up what he was saying. "Pardon?"
"He's jealous of you."
"Hmm. Maybe."
"You have everything he's ever wanted." Jack pulled back a little so that he could make eye contact. "You have me, you have my child. You have my love and devotion. Everything John's ever wanted."
"What about the Doctor? I thought John might ... y'know ... like him?"
"Maybe," shrugged Jack. "But the Doctor's not here, nor is he me."
"I bet that does wonders for your ego."
Jack's face cracked into a smile. "Like being called 'Eye-Candy' does yours?"
"I ... uh ... I ... I never ... you ... !" Ianto spluttered.
Jack grinned knowingly, and Ianto all but pouted.
"I might like it ... a little," he sniffed. "But who wouldn't - aside from it being incredibly patronising and objectifying."
"Shut up. You love it," Jack teased, and kissed his lips. "You know ... this whole technically-not-being-married business has done wonders for our relationship."
Ianto felt his expression slip slightly. "We were only married for a couple of weeks. How can we tell?"
Jack pulled him closer and into a cuddle, and they stood quietly for a moment or two.
"What's that?" Ianto frowned. "Oh - Shirley! You didn't leave the door open for her!"
He hurried over to the wardrobe and pulled out her cage. She gazed dolefully up at him, and was fairly certain that had she possessed the physical capabilities, she'd have been pouting. "Ohhhh stop it," he chastised fondly. "Shall we go and reunite you with Giacomo?"
"I'll make sure the camera's ready!" grinned Jack, and slipped back outside. Ianto got his little gift box ready, coaxing Shirely into it with great difficulty.
"It's only for a minute," he glared as she splayed her limbs out like a starfish, refusing to be pushed into the box. "Oh fine. Ruin the moment," he pouted, stroking the top of her head. "Stay hidden in my hands, okay?"
He briefly registered that he was talking to the dog like she might actually understand anything he was saying, and hid her as best he could, wondering for the first time why he'd never actually acknowledged how useful big hands were. He stood and poked his head around the door, spotting Jack crouched by Giacomo in his Little Captain's Coat. Jack had taken his own coat from the peg by the door, ready to put it on for co-oridination's sake for the photographs.
Ianto emerged from the room, resolutely ignoring John as Jack slung on his coat, then lifted Giacomo to sit on his hip as the other children made noise, spinning and laughing around them. Ianto held Shirley firmly to his chest, his thumb stroking her belly reassuringly in all the racket as the bow around her neck scraped gently at his skin.
"Giacomo?"
Giacomo grinned over at him, hearing his name.
"I've got something for you," Ianto smiled. "Look!"
He offered out his hand, holding his palm flat, Shirley sitting there dazedly and fidgeting in her ribbon. Giacomo stared at her for nearly five seconds, then let out a squeal that very nearly made Ianto's ears hurt. Wriggling and reaching out, he managed to grasp hold of her (with warnings from Ianto to be gentle) and cuddled her and laughed.
"Shirley!" he squeaked, and held her up to look at her, Jack utching him further up his hip as his wriggling made him slip. Eventually he put him down, and went to stand by Ianto as Giacomo crouched to put Shirley on the floor and start playing with her as his friends gathered around to see, gasping in awe and saying how much they wanted a hamster-dog.
"Good call there," Jack smiled, kissing Ianto's cheek.
"Are you always into gross displays of affection on birthdays?" Ianto asked with a slight smile in return. He hissed through his teeth and jerked away as Jack managed to successfully nip his earlobe. He turned his attention back to the children and the little dog, told them to back off a little and not to scare her, then allowed Jack to wrap arms around his middle and cuddle him as they watched the children play.
John was slumped on the sofa, sipping his drink and keeping quiet, resolutely not watching them.
~*~*~*~
Eventually, John just left. Ianto had glanced around to find him, and he'd disappeared. Malcolm said he'd seen him leaving, and been sent back into the party when he'd tried to make him stay.
Jack had finally agreed that really, presents should have waited until after the children had eaten. It was hard enough to get them all to behave without them being all excited about Giacomo's new things, begging to try out the paints or strangling each other with the scarf before cooing and fussing over Shirley.
"You have to make sure her food is very, very small!" Ianto warned Giacomo, helping him to pull apart bits of burger to feed to her. "And don't give her anything to drink other than water - she'll get sick otherwise."
Rhys and Till disappeared and reappeared several times over the course of the party, vanishing all together after the candles had been blown out and the cake cut up. The cake was 'rustic', in Ianto's turn of phrase, but he was proud of Jack and Giacomo for actually doing quite well with it - despite the three batches of wasted ingredients and false starts, it tasted delicious.
They played party games (which Jack was eventually forced to sit out of, since losing wasn't his 'thing') and handed out prizes, the kids getting rowdier and rowdier until they finally all seemed to run out of energy at once and sat around for the last half hour. Malcolm had decided to save his mischief until the final ten minutes, hiding his shoes, 'borrowing' Giacomo's pencil crayons, running around in circles and then nagging and nagging and nagging at Jack until eventually the Captain had taken his coat off and tossed it over Malcolm's head in the hope he might be quiet. Ianto had chastised the method, but left the coat where it was. The awe of it seemed to be keeping Malcolm quiet for a moment, at any rate.
After most of the kids had gone, it was just Jack, Ianto, Annabel, Giacomo and Ophelia left (Rhys and Till had vanished for good, it seemed). Giacomo and Ophelia were trying to teach Shirley to roll over, though Ianto couldn't really see how repeating the words, 'roll over! Roll over, girl! Roll over!' was actually going to work. Annabel was watching them bemusedly, eating her birthday cake and waiting for her mother to come and get her.
Ianto checked his watch, and started clearing up the streamers and balloons into bin bags. He popped the first balloon before putting it in the bag, making the entire room jump unexpectedly. Ianto smirked to himself and carried on, Jack coming over to help with balloon popping, then Annabel. Before long, Jack had turned it into a competition he was determined to win, picking up three balloons at a time and squeezing them to his chest while Annabel fruitlessly jumped up and down on the same balloon to no avail.
Giacomo was not quite so impressed. He hid Shirley in his hands, cuddling her as best he could, convinced she was terrified of the sounds of the balloons popping. Indignant when Jack and Annabel refused to stop, he and Ophelia retreated to his bedroom to try and continue their teaching Shirley the 'roll over' trick. Eventually, though, the balloons ran out, and Elaine arrived with baby Ian to take Annabel home.
Jack lit up and took the baby from her, tickling him and cooing at how big he was getting now. He was holding his own head up and looking around, his tiny fist curled into the Captain's lapel as he giggled.
Ianto offered Elaine a cup of coffee (which she refused in favour of tea) and he hurried off to the kitchen to make it. She settled on the couch as Annabel ran up to her for a cuddle herself.
"Where's Giacomo?" she asked.
"In his bedroom with his new pet and one of his friends," Jack told her, holding Ian up in front of him and not looking away from his face. "You know ... I think he's going to get your looks. Poor bugger - but at least he's not a pink blob any more."
Ianto entered the room with the cup of tea. "No - he's turning bright orange. Just like his father."
The Captain stuck his tongue out at him, jiggling Ian on his hip a little and holding one of his hands.
Sighing quietly, Ianto looked away. He decided to go and sit with Giacomo, and maybe show him and Ophelia how to really go about teaching Shirley tricks. He poked his head around the door, and his eyes nearly popped out in shock.
"Giacomo?"
"Mm?"
"Why ... why is your room tidy?"
Ophelia huffed. "Because I tided it!" she scowled, her features a little purple with the exertion of trying to reach up high enough to get the remnants of the clutter up on top of the fairly tall bookcase. He stared at her, keeping the thoughts 'you're the daughter I never had' strictly to himself.
"Giacomo! You let Ophelia tidy your room?"
He tried his best to sound angry. He really did.
Giacomo looked slightly affronted. "Have you tried arguing with her?"
Ianto folded his arms. "Ophelia, you shouldn't have tidied Giacomo's room. He's supposed to keep it tidy himself."
"Dad doesn't keep yours and his room tidy!" Giacomo argued.
"You ... yo ... you're not your Dad, though, are you, Giacomo? You're supposed to look at the example he sets and do the opposite! Haven't you been listening to me and Rhys?"
Ophelia sighed. "I really don't mind, sir. I like things to be tidy," she smiled, putting Giacomo's new colouring books in the new space she'd created on the bookshelf simply by moving a few around. She was like a sentient IKEA storage solution, and Ianto would have been more than happy to keep her. Especially when she asked, "Would you need any help clearing up the living room? I'd be happy to help."
"You shouldn't be tidying other peoples' messes, love. Most certainly not when they've supposed to have been doing it for three weeks," he added pointedly.
Giacomo pouted. "It's my birthday!"
Ianto rolled his eyes, and lowered himself to sit next to Giacomo on the now clear carpet, Shirley still refusing to roll over. "Come and sit down, Ophelia. I'll show you how to teach her tricks."
It only took fifteen minutes to get Shirley to roll over, and Ianto taught them about rewarding her with tickles and a pleased, praising tone of voice so that she'd want to do it again. He made a mental note to provide Giacomo with chicken or bacon to treat her with when he tried to teach her tricks, and wondered if there were any canine treats he'd be able to find and make small enough for her to learn with.
He glanced down at his watch, and felt his eyes widen at the time. "You should have been back home half an hour ago," he told Ophelia. "Come on, I'll walk you back."
"Oh ... you don't have to do that, sir. You really don't."
"We'll both walk you back, won't we, Giacomo?"
"Can Shirley come?"
"I bought you a lead so you can take her for walks."
"Yay!"
The three of them climbed to their feet and Ianto found Shirley's lead while Ophelia said her goodbyes to the Captain. She insisted on giving him a hug, despite the baby in his arms, then skipped over to the door to happily wait for Ianto and Little Jack.
"You'll have to show me where you live," Ianto told her as they made slow progression down the corridor, Shirley a little unsure about being in the big wide world and Giacomo not really forcing her on, too busy practising swishing his coat in a very similar fashion to how the Captain had only a few days before. "Giacomo," Ianto eventually had to say. "Just carry her if she's too scared to move, okay? Ophelia's parent's might be getting worried she's so late back."
"Don't worry," Ophelia assured him. "They'll be fine."
She slipped her hand into his as they walked along, and Giacomo skipped up to his other side, Shirley in hand.
"I don't need to hold hands," Giacomo told them importantly. "I'm six."
"So am I," replied Ophelia. "I've been six longer than you - but I'm not so silly to think I'm grown up yet."
Ianto laughed to himself. "You walked here on your own, didn't you?"
"Yep! But I want to walk back with you."
"Do you mind me asking ... erm ... what species you are?" Ianto tried, wondering if he might offend her.
"I'm a Pink Varesse," she told him proudly.
"You come in other colours?"
"Blue, purple, pink, green and brown. Sometimes orange, but that's not very often."
They approached a corner, and Giacomo swept around it in his best impression of the Captain, the coat swishing dramatically even on the much smaller scale. "Did you see that?" he asked, poking his head back around the corner. "I swished it proper!"
He put Shirley down so that he could do it again with an extra pair of eyes for an audience. She watched him, her head cocked to the side as if confused by his strange, swishy behaviour.
Ophelia let go of Ianto's hand. "This is how you swish, Giacomo!" she grinned, and spun so that her green skirts would fan out. She stopped dead after a couple of turns, the skirts still moving and swaying with the momentum still.
"I can do that!" Giacomo insisted, and flung himself around. The coat wasn't light enough to continue moving with the momentum of Ophelia's skirts, but it had effect enough. He tried it again, lost his balance and fell down with a thud. "Ow!" he grumbled.
Ophelia let out a squeak and helped him up. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"
Ianto hung back a little to watch them.
"I'm okay," Giacomo assured her bravely. "I could have got hurt though. There's a bone at the bottom of human spines and you can break it dead easy."
Ianto decided not to question Giacomo's knowledge of human bones just yet, and as they set off again found they'd forgotten about Shirley. Ianto stooped and picked her up.
"Honestly - they're as bad as each other, aren't they, girl?" he muttered to her. "Jack finds a distraction, he forgets about us. Giacomo finds a distraction ... pfft. Gone."
Shirley yawned, then scratched at the ribbon around her neck. Taking pity on her, Ianto pulled it loose and put it in his pocket, following Giacomo and Ophelia down three flights of stairs then down one of the narrower, more cramped corridors full of doors leading to flats. Giacomo was still telling Ophelia about his dangerously delicate human bones when she stopped by her doorway.
"This is me," she pointed, and knocked on the door before pushing it open anyway. She turned and smiled politely at Ianto. "Thank you very, very much for the lovely party, Mr. Jones. I had a wonderful time! And thank you for inviting me, Giacomo," she finished.
"Any time," Giacomo said, giving her a lop-sided grin and leaning in the doorway with his arms folded - the way the Captain did when he was trying to appear suave and flirtatious. Ianto bit down a giggle.
"You're welcome to come again any time, Ophelia," he assured her. "To play, or for tea, or to see Shirley. Just let Giacomo know during your class, okay?"
She grinned and nodded as someone shouted 'Leah?' from inside the flat. She called back in reply, telling whoever it was that she was back. Footsteps approached the door, and an elderly woman of a deep blue colour - Ianto assumed her to be the same species as Ophelia - appeared.
"Oh ... hello? Mr. Jones, isn't it?"
"Yes. You are ... ?"
"Ophelia's grandma-ma. Has she been good?"
"She's been perfect. I was just telling her she's welcome to come 'round and play any time."
The old woman's face cracked into a smile. "Good girl."
"Well," sighed Ianto. "We better be off." He ruffled Giacomo's hair, the boy still leaning casually in the doorframe and trying to keep Opehlia's attention on him. He shook off Ianto's hand, remembered Shirley and reached up for.
"This is my dog, Mrs. Hunt!" he grinned. "My dads got her for me. And my coat!"
"That's a very posh coat," smiled Ophelia's grandma-ma. "but we shall let you go. Say 'thank you' and 'goodbye', Leah."
"Thanks for having me. Bye bye!" she waved.
"See you later," Giacomo grinned, trying to make Shirley perch on his shoulder like a pirate's parrot.
"Goodbye, Mrs. Hunt. Bye, Ophelia," smiled Ianto.
They turned to leave as the door closed, and Giacomo skipped ahead a little bit so he could practise his swish when he doubled back.
"So ..." Ianto cleared his throat. "... Ophelia is a very lovely little girl."
"Mm? Yeah," Giacomo agreed.
"Do you ... y'know ... like her?"
Giacomo nodded, then spun on the spot to make his coat fan out.
"Do you ... 'like her' like her?"
At this, Giacomo looked like a deer in the headlights. His eyes widened, and a blush creeped over his cheeks. Ianto felt a smile spreading over his own features, as Giacomo became very interested in Shirley.
"She is a very lovely girl. And very pretty."
"She don't like me," Giacomo replied shortly. "Like ... 'like me' like me."
"Why wouldn't she?"
"Because she's lovely and pretty and popular and I'm not."
Ianto blinked. "Giacomo ... you do realise that when you grow up, you're going to look almost exactly like your father? You're already looking like him now!"
They were climbing the stairs now, and Giacomo was only just bringing his attention away from Shirley. "I do?"
"Yes, Giacomo. You do," Ianto sighed, wondering what sort of monster he might be creating should Giacomo really grow up to be exactly like his dad - in both mannerisms and vanity.
"But ... when Dad looks at people, they blush. Or run and hide."
"You're only a baby, Giacomo. Give it time. I'm sure you'll develop those mystical skills in about ten years."
"Ten years! I have to wait ten years!"
Ianto muttered to himself so low Giacomo probably didn't hear, "... it'd be twenty if it was up to me ...."
Back at the flat, they found Jack dancing around a bit with Ian in his arms, but Annabel and Elaine were nowhere to be found. Rhys and Till still hadn't resurfaced, either. "Where's Elaine?" asked Ianto, crouching down to help unbutton Giacomo's coat.
"She's taking Annabel to the cinema, so I said I'd watch Ian for a couple of hours," explained Jack, tickling Ian again. Little Jack eyed the baby dubiously.
Ianto stood and narrowed his eyes, hanging up the coat. "You've not arranged for him to sleep over, have you?"
"Nope - but I could?" Jack suggested, his expression a smidgen hopeful.
Clearing his throat, Ianto folded his arms. "One step at a time?" he offered.
Jack grinned at him. "Here: hold this!"
He all but shoved Ian into Ianto's arms, then stood and scooped up Giacomo. "Hey you, birthday boy! You had a good day?"
Ianto held the baby awkwardly.
Ianto looked at Ian, and Ian looked at Ianto.
"Um ... hi?"
Ian blinked a couple of times, putting his fist in his mouth and still staring at Ianto.
"Erm ...."
Ianto thought back to what Jack did when he was given the baby.
Tickling.
Right.
Ianto could tickle.
He wiggled his fingers over Ian's belly, and the baby squirmed and giggled and gurgled delightedly. Glancing over, Ianto could see Jack and Giacomo testing out the new pencil crayons on the floor, wrapped up in themselves. He gave Ian another doubtful look, then flinched as a tiny fist collided with his chin before it tried to pinch and tug at his face.
"Hey, hey, hey ... you. Don't do that, sweetheart."
He held the baby on his hip with one hand and felt the firm grip of Ian's fist round his fingers with the other. Ian yawned, his head lolling forward and resting on Ianto's shoulder, and softly Ianto rocked him, still awkward and unsure. Steady breathing and a slight snuffle, a relax in grip and a limp-bodied baby told him he'd done something right, and he felt a warm fuzzy feeling inside.
Maybe babies aren't so bad, he pondered, walking carefully to the couch and sitting down slowly, trying not to disturb Ian. In fact ... he is cute. And cuddly. And ....
Ian's eyes suddenly flew open wide, and he promptly threw up all down the front of Ianto's shirt, scrunched up his face and starting wailing at the top of his tiny lungs.
Ianto was too mortified to move.
"Jack," he called weakly. "Jack ... I really think you want your son back ...."
~*~*~*~
Late that night, Ianto was sat at Jack's office computer opening the search box for the finalised lists. It didn't take long to find Ophelia Hunt and change her prospected location to somewhere nearer where their new house was going to be, and he covered his tracks by making sure he switched someone into hers and her grandma-ma's old place so there were no double-bookings.
Ianto liked to think he was a 'good judge of character', and he had judged Ophelia favourably.
He had made sure that the Captain had definitely put Rhys and Till together and local, then thought for a good five minutes about whether or not six was too early to start matchmaking for Giacomo.
To hell with it, he decided, and clicked 'Save'. Pleased with himself, Ianto shut down the computer, leaned back in Jack's chair and waited for the lights to blink out.
~*~*~*~
The buses would be able to fit a hundred people on each, plus their luggage - or so Jack said.
Looking at them now, Ianto wasn't quite so sure. It looked like it might be a smidgen crowded on the huge, metal, floating cockroaches that loomed up toward the School at an ominously slow speed. He and Giacomo were watching from the window - as was everyone else, Ianto didn't doubt.
Five of them were due today, then in a week another five.
Then it would be only the last few stragglers remaining - himself, Jack and Giacomo included - to sort out the any final niggling things before being taken away themselves.
They were still in their pyjamas, having been awoken by the sound of a foghorn that had sounded a helluva lot closer than he would have thought. Jack had already been up - he probably hadn't slept the night before (in fact, he'd hardly slept since the day after Giacomo's birthday party, when he'd published the lists. Of course, a few people weren't going to be happy - and of course, it was all the Captain's fault) - and Ianto was fairly certain that should he go upstairs now, he'd find Jack in his office staring into space, wondering why he hadn't been able to fix everything.
Giacomo pushed Ianto's arm aside so that he could climb onto his lap and cuddle. "I don't want everything to change," he murmured quietly.
Ianto brushed his hair out of his eyes, and gave him his best reassuring smile. "Maybe everything will change for the better?"
"Mmm," he agreed, though he sounded doubtful. "Maybe."
They sat and watched a while longer, until the first few people were being shepherded out and filing onto buses. All of them were reluctant to go, walking slowly, and each of them gave one last, rueful glance to the old building before climbing onto their designated bus and disappearing into the metal belly, waiting to be taken away.
"Can we do some colouring in now?" Giacomo asked.
"Yeah," nodded Ianto.
They sat cross-legged on the living room floor, and Giacomo got out his pencils.
I did it again! Sorry for the so long chapters - I just get going with this one and don't realise how long it goes on for!
I've actually cut this one down - you can have the Return of the Mysterious Puzzlebox and the Pesky Lawyers next time!
Next Part | Previous Part | Torchwood Index | Request a Convo/Prose Fic
Chapter: 21 | ??
Characters: Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones
Author:
a_silver_storyGenre Alternate Universe, Romance
Rating: NC-17 just to be safe.
Warnings: A bit of angst, and some tentacles and d/c in the future.
Disclaimer: If I owned anything in this, I'd be a rich rich rich bitch. However, I am not a rich rich rich bitch so you may all, therefore, assume I own nothing. Which I don't. It all belongs RTD and the BBC, in case any of you didn't know.
Summary: Ianto finds himself heartbroken and alone, but eventually learns that no matter what point in Captain Jack Harkness' life he finds himself, they will always fall in love.
Torchwood Index/Masterlist
First Part
Another Life
Another Life XXI
Ianto stared around Rhys ' flat.
Streamers and balloons were crowded into the corners, the coffee table creaked under bowls of crisps, nuts, biscuits and nibbles and the cake Big Jack and Little Jack had ruined three lots of eggs, flour, sugar and butter to make sat proudly on the end-table, thick, blue icing dripping down the sides and "Happy Sixth Birthday, Jack!" iced on in yellow. There were little tidal marks in the sides of the cake, where Big and Little fingers had been dragged through to steal bits of unset icing or the buttercream filling.
Rhys was bustling around in the dining room, making sure the table was properly set for all the guests and that the food would be ready to just heat up when it was needed. The party games were all waiting to be played, and there had been a special corner kept clear for Giacomo's presents to go.
Ianto set down the gift from himself and Jack - the wrapped box containing the coat - and put an over-excited Shirley in his old wardrobe.
"Shush, you," he muttered, stroking her head through the bars as she yapped at him. She was wearing a blue ribbon bow around her neck, the knot settled on the back of her head. "You've got plenty of food, plenty of water. All you have to do is stay quiet for me, okay?"
She yapped twice, then retreated into her cage. Ianto left the wardrobe door open a crack so that she'd still have some light, and went to help Rhys with the last-minute preparations before Giacomo arrived with Jack.
"You're late."
Jack gave Ianto a very sheepish look. "It was my fault," he admitted as Giacomo scowled up at him.
"He 'couldn't get his hair right'!" he mimicked, clearly disgruntled about being late to his own birthday party.
Ianto ruffled his hair. "You're here now," he sighed. "that's what matters - and only Annabel is here at the moment anyway."
The Captain was taking off his big, black coat, hanging it carefully. Ianto folded his arms, and raised an eyebrow. "Your hair doesn't look any different to what it usually does."
"Well ... I couldn't tell him what really took so long in shower, could I?" he pointed out.
Ianto felt his eyes widen slightly. "Right ... well ... ahem. Kiddies party, shall we?"
Giacomo was already eyeing the few presents in the corner greedily, and he and Annabel were soon crouched by them, deciphering the labels and shaking boxes. "I know what this one is," Giacomo grinned, pointing at the box from Ianto and Jack. "Can I open it? I already know what it is!"
"You can open your presents after everybody's got here and we've all eaten," Ianto told him, and was met with a groan.
"But I know what it is! There's not even a point to it being wrapped!"
Ianto stamped on the Captain's foot as he sniggered beside him, cutting him off. Jack cleared his throat. "Ianto spent a long time measuring out ribbon and wrapping paper for that present, so you'll be patient and do as you're told," he chastised, face straight. Giacomo wandered off with Annabel to sulk and do some drawing, and Jack turned to Ianto in search of approval. Ianto simply rolled his eyes.
"You're as bad as he is, you know that?"
Jack grinned. "Wanna see how many eclairs I can fit in my mouth without dying?"
"I'm guessing ... one? Any more and I'd be the one killing yo -"
His sentence was cut off by Jack shoving him into the wall and pressing their mouths together with no warning. Ianto yelped quietly, then relaxed against him and fell into rhythm, sliding his hand up over Jack's back, shoulder and entangling his fingers in the short hair at the back of his head. Jack pulled back, and Ianto couldn't help but smile dopily. "What was that for?"
"Felt like it," grinned Jack, just as dopily.
"WOAH! Giacomo - not on Annabel's clothes!"
Jack and Ianto came back to themselves, glancing over and finding that Annabel had allowed Giacomo to try and draw on the back of her t-shirt with a felt-tip pen. Ianto groaned - he would probably be the one explaining to her mother why the pretty blue top was ruined and replacing it. He pushed himself out of the space between Jack and the wall, and was cut off mid-stride when a knock sounded on the door. He sighed, and went to answer it.
"Hello? Have you come on your own?"
A tiny pink girl with purple patterns over her temples and down her neck, shoulders and arms, black hair and a green dress stood grinning up at him with bright, white teeth and twinkling eyes. "Yessir! I walked alllll the way by myself!"
"Really? Aren't you ... five?"
"Six! It's not very dangerous. I know a lot of people."
Ianto decided not to argue with the two-and-a-half foot pink girl offering him a sparkly gift bag. "What's your name?" he asked, moving aside to let her in and taking the bag.
"Ophelia," she said, and tossed her hair importantly. "Where's Giaca - why's the Captain here?" she squeaked, then hid behind her hands as she flushed a rich purple.
Ianto bit his lip to stop himself laughing (though ... give it fifteen years and he'd be guiding her back out the door ....), and ushered her toward Annabel and Giacomo.
"Hiya, 'Phelia!" grinned Giacomo, tugging her hand so that she plopped down next to him. "What's wrong?" he asked, noticing her slowly receding purple hue.
"You never said the Captain would be here!" she exclaimed, wide-eyed, and Ianto held in a chortle.
"He's my Dad!" Giacomo grinned. "Why wouldn't he be here?"
She squeaked, and glanced over at the Captain trying to pick at the nibbles on the table that hadn't been unwrapped yet while avoiding getting his hands slapped away by Rhys. With a handful of peanuts he turned around, and Ianto jerked his head at the new arrival. He grinned in her once-again-purple direction, and she did her best to maintain her composure, picking at the green flowers on her dress.
Jack gave Ianto a very smug smile, clearly proud of himself.
A few minutes later, the door went again, and Ianto found another girl, about seven years old with long brown hair wearing a bowler hat and neon pink dress standing behind it. "I'm Jezbie," she smiled sweetly, flicking her hair. "This is Giacomo's party, right?"
"Come in, come in ...." Ianto ushered, and soon she was sat with Opehlia, Annabel and Giacomo. Opehlia pointed out the Captain loitering by the nibbles to her, and she had a similar reaction.
Oh dear God, Ianto though as his inner voice sighed. They're not even pre-pubescent. Pre-pre-pre-pubescent, maybe?
He also considered the fact that the last two guests had walked to the party on their own. Were he and Jack too over-protective of Giacomo? Was he old enough to walk from one flat to another? Was he old enough to walk from their flat to Rhys' on his own? It's not like he had roads to cross, or strangers to look out for. Not really ....
Two more guests arrived, and Ianto was noticing a pattern.
They were all girls.
He bit his lip.
While the concept of 'straight' wasn't really a concept any more, he did wonder if Giacomo might prefer girls. Or ... was it boys who surrounded themselves with girls who tended to like boys? Now Ianto was just confusing himself. After a moment of consideration, Ianto remembered that it didn't matter, and that it was just his ancient and ingrained attitudes trying to figure out a label.
Giacomo had never really talked about any of his friends, Ianto realised. He scratched his chin, watching Yukiko (who was yellow with blue lips and nails) and Lori (who was human, with caramel skin and bright, bright blue eyes) beginning a game of Blind Man's Bluff with the already present guests.
Ianto had been looking forward to seeing their reaction to spotting Jack, but it appeared the Captain had wandered off somewhere having been banished from the nibbles table and banned from the kitchen.
"Rhys?" Ianto called, and Rhys appeared by the presents, having been trying to sort them into something that didn't look like a haphazard heap.
"Mmhmm?"
"Where's Jack?"
"Erm ... your room, I think," he said. "I banned him from everywhere with food, so he's probably with the ... y'know ... secret thing."
Ianto nodded and thanked him, and slipped off to his room. He found Jack sat on his old, bare mattress cuddling Shirley and nuzzling her head with his nose.
"I hear you got banned from the nibbles table?" Ianto sighed, sitting next to him.
"Apparently eating the whole bowl of nuts was neither good for me or fair on the kids. It's unjust! Everyone knows how much Captain Jack Harkness loves nuts!" His eyes twinkled as he grinned at Ianto. "I love birthdays. Kiddies' birthdays. Always more effort into your kids' birthday than your own - and you always have more fun, too. And you get to play all the party games, and just ... be silly. Have fun."
Ianto stroked Shirley's head with his finger. "Just make sure you let the kids win at the games, yeah?" he suggested cheekily. "Now come on back out - I wanna see if you can make the two new arrivals at the party change colour. Make sure you put Shirley in her cage properly."
Ianto led Jack back into the living room, and was satisfied to see Yukiko turn orange and Lori turn a deep shade of pink, as well as Ophelia's purple and Jezbie's red. Both Annabel and Giacomo gave them funny looks.
"We could make a rainbow ...." Jack muttered in Ianto's ear, his tone smug once again.
"It must be great being you," he replied, rolling his eyes.
Jack simply grinned, kissed his cheek, then went to go and join in the colouring-in session - Ianto was fairly certain that any second, one of the little girls was going to faint. Maybe Rhys might be up for a wager ....
"Sorry I'm late!" called a voice from the doorway. "Hallooooo!"
Rhys perked up. "Till!" he called back, grinning. "Come in ... come in ... nibbles?"
"Hey!" Jack glared. "I wasn't allowed nibbles!"
Rhys cleared his throat, and pulled Till toward the nibbles table.
Ianto was suddenly at a loss with what to do with himself, so started re-arranging balloons and sorting the gifts. There was a cacophony of laughter from the colouring corner of the room, and Ianto glanced over to spot Jack looking non-too-impressed with a line of black felt-tip that had found its way over his cheek when he'd attempted to sweep the hair out of his eyes. He pouted when he spotted Ianto trying not to laugh at him, and Ianto had to turn his back. He spotted Till loitering in the corner, and wandered over to chat.
"Hey," he smiled. "How're things?"
"Fine, Ianto. Just fine! And for you?"
"Erm ... a little rocky. Lawyers," he grimaced, pulling his face. Till laughed.
"Do you ... know anything about ... y'know ... the move?" she asked.
"What do you want to know?"
"Well ... I ... I don't ... want to end up with a stranger when ... it happens. Y'know?"
"Jack's publishing the lists tomorrow."
"I know ... but ... they're saying that the lists are final. There won't be enough time to rearrange."
"Knowing Jack, he played matchmaker and put you with Rhys," Ianto told her.
"Oh ...." Her face brightened up. "That's ... that's okay then! - are you sure?"
"I can check for you."
She nodded. "Just think ... this time next week there'll be five hundred less people here. It'll be ... empty."
"You might be in the first five hundred. Depends on your accommodation."
Till sighed. "I rejoin my timeline a few years. At least then I'll be treated like I matter."
Ianto sighed heavily, and tried not to stiffen too much when she slipped her arms around his middle and hugged him. He rested his cheek on her hair momentarily and squeezed her. "At least you were never so far from home, and at least you get to rejoin your timeline and see your family and friends again. You're bloody lucky, Till."
"Yeah," she agreed. "I always forget that ... y'know ... I've actually had it pretty easy compared."
They broke out of the hug.
"Tell me about your home?" she asked, and Ianto fidgeted minutely.
"Erm ... like what?"
"Rhys has told me some things," she smiled. "About Gwen, mainly, but who can blame him? And funny little stories about his friends, and about his transport job."
Ianto gave a small laugh.
"Do you miss home?"
"Of course I miss home. It's where my family are ... but ... I wouldn't change this. If I'd not come here ... look what I'd be missing out on!"
"Being herded out to work factory floors for next to nothing?"
"I have my own family. I never even thought I'd have that, and they mean more to me than anything."
"You must be an optimist."
"Until I came here I was a dire pessimist."
There was another knock on the door, and Ianto excused himself to go and answer it. He discovered a small blond boy scowling, stood in front of whom Ianto assumed was his father, and looking rather annoyed.
"Is this Giacomo's party?" the similarly blond man asked politely. Ianto nodded and stood aside with a smile to let them in. "Malcolm's been playing up a little today," he continued. "If he's naughty, just give me a call and I'll come and get him."
Malcolm's pout became twice as pronounced, and his scowl deepened. He said goodbye to his dad, and Ianto gave his petulant behaviour a raised eyebrow. "Carry on behaving like that, and I'll not bother to call your father and you can spend the entire party in the corner watching everyone else having fun, playing games and eating cake until home time."
Ianto vaguely wondered if it was acceptable to offer such a punishment to another person's child, but he wasn't having anyone ruining Giacomo's party.
The pout vanished. "Sorry, Mr. Harkness," Malcolm said sheepishly. "I'll behave, I promise."
"Mmm. Of course you will - and it's Mr. Jones."
"But you got married!"
"I kept my name," Ianto sniffed indignantly, and sent Malcolm off to colour. He watched as he approached the gaggle to say 'hello', spotted the Captain and turned a darker shade than even Ophelia had managed. He sat down primly, cross legged, unashamedly staring.
Ianto could almost hear Jack's thoughts.
Five out of five ... ahhhh yeah!
"Is everybody here?" Jack was asking the cluster of children. "Is it time for presents?"
They all chorused an excited 'yeahhh!', apart from Giacomo, who gave a very firm 'No!'.
Jack and the kids stared at him as if he was the strangest thing they'd ever seen.
"Daddy said after food!" he insisted, and Ianto felt his eyebrows pretty much hit the ceiling.
"Well ... Dad's saying 'now'," Jack pouted.
"But Daddy's in charge!"
Malcolm seemed almost offended by the admission. "The Captain's in charge!" he insisted, batting his eyes as she sidled closer to Jack. "That's why he's the Captain!"
The other overwhelmed children agreed, and Giacomo looked from face to face, bewildered. "But ... but ... in our house, Dad does what Daddy tells him or else!"
Ianto broke, and had to turn away. He was pretty sure Rhys and Till were sniggering by the nibbles - he was also pretty sure Rhys had a smudge of lipstick on his cheek.
Jack cleared his throat. "I say presents now," he said, and rose his gaze to Ianto, daring him to challenge his authority.
Ianto sighed dramatically. "Okay - but whatever the consequences may be, it will be the Captain's fault ...."
The kids cheered and Jack grinned, and they all settled in a circle as Ianto, Rhys and Till brought the presents over to set in the middle.
"I'm going to open ...." Little Jack contemplated. "... this one!"
He pulled the box from Jack and Ianto out of the middle of the stack, ignoring the others as they tumbled down. Ripping open the paper without a moment's thought for the perfect symmetry or artistry that Ianto had found himself stressing over, he yanked open the box and let out a squeal of delight. The girls all gasped as he pulled out his new coat, exactly the same as the Captain's but with 'G' embossed on the buttons, and slung it on.
Jack helped him with the fastenings and made him do a twirl, and Giacomo was practically jumping up and down on the spot with excitement. "I love it, I love it, I love it!" he grinned, and he gave Ianto a kiss and a hug before giving the Captain a cuddle, too. Rhys was grinning, as was Till, and Ianto did his best not to beam like a madman at Giacomo's happiness.
He plopped back down, and pulled a random box toward him, ripping open the paper after reading the tag as quickly as he could. It was from Yukiko, the yellow and blue girl, and she had got him a plastic watch with a large digital clock face.
"Press this here," she instructed bossily. "It tells you what time, 'cuz I know you can't read it yet."
Giacomo flushed slightly.
"Don't worry, Jack!" Ophelia piped up. "I can't neither!"
Yukiko sighed and rolled her eyes dramatically.
Ianto cleared his throat. "Next present!" he declared, moving things along.
Giacomo picked up the gift bag Ophelia had arrived with, his rummaging in it only slightly marred by the new watch on his wrist. Ianto noted he'd put it on his right wrist rather than his left, despite being right-handed, as the Captain did.
From the bag, Giacomo produced a rather expensive-looking set of pencil crayons.
"They're better than wax crayons," Ophelia told him enthusiastically. "You have more control and stuff. You press hard and the colour goes better."
"I love them," Giacomo announced. "They're my favourite." He reached for the next gift, but was interrupted from getting into it by the sound of the door flying open. The group all turned to look, and Ianto rolled his eyes as he was forced to watch John Hart making a dramatic entrance two hours too early.
After stony 'hello's' on Ianto's part and warm greetings on the others, John settled himself next to Giacomo, admired his coat and soon found him clambering into his lap to open the rest of his presents.
Ianto gave a very, very meaningful look at Jack, and the Captain cleared his throat. "You're gonna give Captain Hart pins and needles, Giacomo. Sit on the carpet."
Giacomo pouted and did as he was told - the rest of the party guests minus Rhys, Till and Ianto all suddenly enamoured with the new arrival. Malcolm might have even been drooling.
It took Little Jack only fifteen minutes to work his way through his gifts. He got an easel, some paints, two 'How to Draw' books and a colouring book from Rhys and Till, as well as a set of paints and some paintbrushes; a strange sort of fedora hat from Jezbie; a 'How to Draw Dragons' book from Lori; a photo frame from Annabel and a matching scarf, hat and mittens-on-a-string from Malcolm.
Ianto quickly cleared away all the debris as another game of Blind Man's Bluff was beginning, and managed to corner John pretty efficiently.
"What the Hell are you doing here?" he hissed quietly.
"I was invited?" John reminded him.
"You're not invited for another two hours!"
"Calm down, Eye-Candy. You're gonna do yourself an injury."
Ianto had to breathe pretty deep and bite the inside of his mouth to stop himself snapping something unnecessary. "Just ... don't cause any trouble. Or start any riots. It's hard enough keeping my eye on Captain Harkness, never mind Harkness and Hart and the children."
"I'll be on my best behaviour," promised Hart, but there was a twinkle in his eye that Ianto couldn't trust. "Besides - Giacomo wants me here! - hey .... maybe I could jump forward a few birthdays ... say ... sixteen years old?"
Ianto felt like John had punched him in the gut. "You ... you ... you dare even touch him, and I'll fucking kill you."
"Hey!" smirked John. "Maybe you killing me is the reason why he comes back an- okay ... I don't like the look on your face. Seriously, Eye-Candy: I'm just theorising!"
Ianto stepped forward until he was in John's personal space, practically nose to nose. He kept his voice low and level, not even tremoring. "You do not joke. You do not 'theorise'. You most certainly do not come into our lives with the intent of ruining everything. And you know what, John? If you touch so much as a hair on that boy's head, I will kill you. Very slowly."
"I've heard that threat before," John reminded him.
"You honestly think I wouldn't?"
"I think 'Lil Baby Jack might get his insane streak from you."
"Ianto!"
Ianto's head snapped around, and he met Jack's unimpressed gaze.
"Word, please?"
Ianto glared at him, but brushed past John to get to his old bedroom. Jack followed him in, and waited for him to speak first. Ianto folded his arms and glared, resolutely waiting for Jack. The Captain gave in.
"Well?" he prompted.
"Well, what?"
"You were spoiling for a fight in there! I could smell the testosterone!"
Ianto snorted in disbelief.
"You're supposed to be the sensible one, Ianto! What the Hell were you thinking?"
Still glaring, Ianto shifted his weight from one leg to the other. "He threatened Giacomo."
Jack's expression changed in an instant. He turned on his heel. "I'm going to kill the wrinkly-faced motherfuck-"
His sentence was cut off by Ianto tugging the back of his shirt. "Jack!"
"What?"
"Just ...."
Ianto hesitated for a second, then sniggered. He let out a small laugh as Jack stared at him in confusion, then laughed more and more.
"Why are you laughing?" Jack demanded.
"No idea!" shrugged Ianto. He rested his forehead on Jack's shoulder. "Absolutely no idea."
He felt Jack's cheek rest on his hair, and arms wrapped around him and squeezed. "You're not normal, you aren't," Jack muttered fondly. "Don't ever change. Now tell me what John said."
"He was ... okay ... his threat was probably pretty empty. He insinuated travelling to the future to sleep with a sixteen-year-old Giacomo."
Ianto had to grab hold of Jack tightly again as he made to go back out to the party.
"I think he's just jealous of us," Ianto soothed, nuzzling the base of Jack's hairline. Jack growled darkly, but Ianto didn't quite pick up what he was saying. "Pardon?"
"He's jealous of you."
"Hmm. Maybe."
"You have everything he's ever wanted." Jack pulled back a little so that he could make eye contact. "You have me, you have my child. You have my love and devotion. Everything John's ever wanted."
"What about the Doctor? I thought John might ... y'know ... like him?"
"Maybe," shrugged Jack. "But the Doctor's not here, nor is he me."
"I bet that does wonders for your ego."
Jack's face cracked into a smile. "Like being called 'Eye-Candy' does yours?"
"I ... uh ... I ... I never ... you ... !" Ianto spluttered.
Jack grinned knowingly, and Ianto all but pouted.
"I might like it ... a little," he sniffed. "But who wouldn't - aside from it being incredibly patronising and objectifying."
"Shut up. You love it," Jack teased, and kissed his lips. "You know ... this whole technically-not-being-married business has done wonders for our relationship."
Ianto felt his expression slip slightly. "We were only married for a couple of weeks. How can we tell?"
Jack pulled him closer and into a cuddle, and they stood quietly for a moment or two.
"What's that?" Ianto frowned. "Oh - Shirley! You didn't leave the door open for her!"
He hurried over to the wardrobe and pulled out her cage. She gazed dolefully up at him, and was fairly certain that had she possessed the physical capabilities, she'd have been pouting. "Ohhhh stop it," he chastised fondly. "Shall we go and reunite you with Giacomo?"
"I'll make sure the camera's ready!" grinned Jack, and slipped back outside. Ianto got his little gift box ready, coaxing Shirely into it with great difficulty.
"It's only for a minute," he glared as she splayed her limbs out like a starfish, refusing to be pushed into the box. "Oh fine. Ruin the moment," he pouted, stroking the top of her head. "Stay hidden in my hands, okay?"
He briefly registered that he was talking to the dog like she might actually understand anything he was saying, and hid her as best he could, wondering for the first time why he'd never actually acknowledged how useful big hands were. He stood and poked his head around the door, spotting Jack crouched by Giacomo in his Little Captain's Coat. Jack had taken his own coat from the peg by the door, ready to put it on for co-oridination's sake for the photographs.
Ianto emerged from the room, resolutely ignoring John as Jack slung on his coat, then lifted Giacomo to sit on his hip as the other children made noise, spinning and laughing around them. Ianto held Shirley firmly to his chest, his thumb stroking her belly reassuringly in all the racket as the bow around her neck scraped gently at his skin.
"Giacomo?"
Giacomo grinned over at him, hearing his name.
"I've got something for you," Ianto smiled. "Look!"
He offered out his hand, holding his palm flat, Shirley sitting there dazedly and fidgeting in her ribbon. Giacomo stared at her for nearly five seconds, then let out a squeal that very nearly made Ianto's ears hurt. Wriggling and reaching out, he managed to grasp hold of her (with warnings from Ianto to be gentle) and cuddled her and laughed.
"Shirley!" he squeaked, and held her up to look at her, Jack utching him further up his hip as his wriggling made him slip. Eventually he put him down, and went to stand by Ianto as Giacomo crouched to put Shirley on the floor and start playing with her as his friends gathered around to see, gasping in awe and saying how much they wanted a hamster-dog.
"Good call there," Jack smiled, kissing Ianto's cheek.
"Are you always into gross displays of affection on birthdays?" Ianto asked with a slight smile in return. He hissed through his teeth and jerked away as Jack managed to successfully nip his earlobe. He turned his attention back to the children and the little dog, told them to back off a little and not to scare her, then allowed Jack to wrap arms around his middle and cuddle him as they watched the children play.
John was slumped on the sofa, sipping his drink and keeping quiet, resolutely not watching them.
Eventually, John just left. Ianto had glanced around to find him, and he'd disappeared. Malcolm said he'd seen him leaving, and been sent back into the party when he'd tried to make him stay.
Jack had finally agreed that really, presents should have waited until after the children had eaten. It was hard enough to get them all to behave without them being all excited about Giacomo's new things, begging to try out the paints or strangling each other with the scarf before cooing and fussing over Shirley.
"You have to make sure her food is very, very small!" Ianto warned Giacomo, helping him to pull apart bits of burger to feed to her. "And don't give her anything to drink other than water - she'll get sick otherwise."
Rhys and Till disappeared and reappeared several times over the course of the party, vanishing all together after the candles had been blown out and the cake cut up. The cake was 'rustic', in Ianto's turn of phrase, but he was proud of Jack and Giacomo for actually doing quite well with it - despite the three batches of wasted ingredients and false starts, it tasted delicious.
They played party games (which Jack was eventually forced to sit out of, since losing wasn't his 'thing') and handed out prizes, the kids getting rowdier and rowdier until they finally all seemed to run out of energy at once and sat around for the last half hour. Malcolm had decided to save his mischief until the final ten minutes, hiding his shoes, 'borrowing' Giacomo's pencil crayons, running around in circles and then nagging and nagging and nagging at Jack until eventually the Captain had taken his coat off and tossed it over Malcolm's head in the hope he might be quiet. Ianto had chastised the method, but left the coat where it was. The awe of it seemed to be keeping Malcolm quiet for a moment, at any rate.
After most of the kids had gone, it was just Jack, Ianto, Annabel, Giacomo and Ophelia left (Rhys and Till had vanished for good, it seemed). Giacomo and Ophelia were trying to teach Shirley to roll over, though Ianto couldn't really see how repeating the words, 'roll over! Roll over, girl! Roll over!' was actually going to work. Annabel was watching them bemusedly, eating her birthday cake and waiting for her mother to come and get her.
Ianto checked his watch, and started clearing up the streamers and balloons into bin bags. He popped the first balloon before putting it in the bag, making the entire room jump unexpectedly. Ianto smirked to himself and carried on, Jack coming over to help with balloon popping, then Annabel. Before long, Jack had turned it into a competition he was determined to win, picking up three balloons at a time and squeezing them to his chest while Annabel fruitlessly jumped up and down on the same balloon to no avail.
Giacomo was not quite so impressed. He hid Shirley in his hands, cuddling her as best he could, convinced she was terrified of the sounds of the balloons popping. Indignant when Jack and Annabel refused to stop, he and Ophelia retreated to his bedroom to try and continue their teaching Shirley the 'roll over' trick. Eventually, though, the balloons ran out, and Elaine arrived with baby Ian to take Annabel home.
Jack lit up and took the baby from her, tickling him and cooing at how big he was getting now. He was holding his own head up and looking around, his tiny fist curled into the Captain's lapel as he giggled.
Ianto offered Elaine a cup of coffee (which she refused in favour of tea) and he hurried off to the kitchen to make it. She settled on the couch as Annabel ran up to her for a cuddle herself.
"Where's Giacomo?" she asked.
"In his bedroom with his new pet and one of his friends," Jack told her, holding Ian up in front of him and not looking away from his face. "You know ... I think he's going to get your looks. Poor bugger - but at least he's not a pink blob any more."
Ianto entered the room with the cup of tea. "No - he's turning bright orange. Just like his father."
The Captain stuck his tongue out at him, jiggling Ian on his hip a little and holding one of his hands.
Sighing quietly, Ianto looked away. He decided to go and sit with Giacomo, and maybe show him and Ophelia how to really go about teaching Shirley tricks. He poked his head around the door, and his eyes nearly popped out in shock.
"Giacomo?"
"Mm?"
"Why ... why is your room tidy?"
Ophelia huffed. "Because I tided it!" she scowled, her features a little purple with the exertion of trying to reach up high enough to get the remnants of the clutter up on top of the fairly tall bookcase. He stared at her, keeping the thoughts 'you're the daughter I never had' strictly to himself.
"Giacomo! You let Ophelia tidy your room?"
He tried his best to sound angry. He really did.
Giacomo looked slightly affronted. "Have you tried arguing with her?"
Ianto folded his arms. "Ophelia, you shouldn't have tidied Giacomo's room. He's supposed to keep it tidy himself."
"Dad doesn't keep yours and his room tidy!" Giacomo argued.
"You ... yo ... you're not your Dad, though, are you, Giacomo? You're supposed to look at the example he sets and do the opposite! Haven't you been listening to me and Rhys?"
Ophelia sighed. "I really don't mind, sir. I like things to be tidy," she smiled, putting Giacomo's new colouring books in the new space she'd created on the bookshelf simply by moving a few around. She was like a sentient IKEA storage solution, and Ianto would have been more than happy to keep her. Especially when she asked, "Would you need any help clearing up the living room? I'd be happy to help."
"You shouldn't be tidying other peoples' messes, love. Most certainly not when they've supposed to have been doing it for three weeks," he added pointedly.
Giacomo pouted. "It's my birthday!"
Ianto rolled his eyes, and lowered himself to sit next to Giacomo on the now clear carpet, Shirley still refusing to roll over. "Come and sit down, Ophelia. I'll show you how to teach her tricks."
It only took fifteen minutes to get Shirley to roll over, and Ianto taught them about rewarding her with tickles and a pleased, praising tone of voice so that she'd want to do it again. He made a mental note to provide Giacomo with chicken or bacon to treat her with when he tried to teach her tricks, and wondered if there were any canine treats he'd be able to find and make small enough for her to learn with.
He glanced down at his watch, and felt his eyes widen at the time. "You should have been back home half an hour ago," he told Ophelia. "Come on, I'll walk you back."
"Oh ... you don't have to do that, sir. You really don't."
"We'll both walk you back, won't we, Giacomo?"
"Can Shirley come?"
"I bought you a lead so you can take her for walks."
"Yay!"
The three of them climbed to their feet and Ianto found Shirley's lead while Ophelia said her goodbyes to the Captain. She insisted on giving him a hug, despite the baby in his arms, then skipped over to the door to happily wait for Ianto and Little Jack.
"You'll have to show me where you live," Ianto told her as they made slow progression down the corridor, Shirley a little unsure about being in the big wide world and Giacomo not really forcing her on, too busy practising swishing his coat in a very similar fashion to how the Captain had only a few days before. "Giacomo," Ianto eventually had to say. "Just carry her if she's too scared to move, okay? Ophelia's parent's might be getting worried she's so late back."
"Don't worry," Ophelia assured him. "They'll be fine."
She slipped her hand into his as they walked along, and Giacomo skipped up to his other side, Shirley in hand.
"I don't need to hold hands," Giacomo told them importantly. "I'm six."
"So am I," replied Ophelia. "I've been six longer than you - but I'm not so silly to think I'm grown up yet."
Ianto laughed to himself. "You walked here on your own, didn't you?"
"Yep! But I want to walk back with you."
"Do you mind me asking ... erm ... what species you are?" Ianto tried, wondering if he might offend her.
"I'm a Pink Varesse," she told him proudly.
"You come in other colours?"
"Blue, purple, pink, green and brown. Sometimes orange, but that's not very often."
They approached a corner, and Giacomo swept around it in his best impression of the Captain, the coat swishing dramatically even on the much smaller scale. "Did you see that?" he asked, poking his head back around the corner. "I swished it proper!"
He put Shirley down so that he could do it again with an extra pair of eyes for an audience. She watched him, her head cocked to the side as if confused by his strange, swishy behaviour.
Ophelia let go of Ianto's hand. "This is how you swish, Giacomo!" she grinned, and spun so that her green skirts would fan out. She stopped dead after a couple of turns, the skirts still moving and swaying with the momentum still.
"I can do that!" Giacomo insisted, and flung himself around. The coat wasn't light enough to continue moving with the momentum of Ophelia's skirts, but it had effect enough. He tried it again, lost his balance and fell down with a thud. "Ow!" he grumbled.
Ophelia let out a squeak and helped him up. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"
Ianto hung back a little to watch them.
"I'm okay," Giacomo assured her bravely. "I could have got hurt though. There's a bone at the bottom of human spines and you can break it dead easy."
Ianto decided not to question Giacomo's knowledge of human bones just yet, and as they set off again found they'd forgotten about Shirley. Ianto stooped and picked her up.
"Honestly - they're as bad as each other, aren't they, girl?" he muttered to her. "Jack finds a distraction, he forgets about us. Giacomo finds a distraction ... pfft. Gone."
Shirley yawned, then scratched at the ribbon around her neck. Taking pity on her, Ianto pulled it loose and put it in his pocket, following Giacomo and Ophelia down three flights of stairs then down one of the narrower, more cramped corridors full of doors leading to flats. Giacomo was still telling Ophelia about his dangerously delicate human bones when she stopped by her doorway.
"This is me," she pointed, and knocked on the door before pushing it open anyway. She turned and smiled politely at Ianto. "Thank you very, very much for the lovely party, Mr. Jones. I had a wonderful time! And thank you for inviting me, Giacomo," she finished.
"Any time," Giacomo said, giving her a lop-sided grin and leaning in the doorway with his arms folded - the way the Captain did when he was trying to appear suave and flirtatious. Ianto bit down a giggle.
"You're welcome to come again any time, Ophelia," he assured her. "To play, or for tea, or to see Shirley. Just let Giacomo know during your class, okay?"
She grinned and nodded as someone shouted 'Leah?' from inside the flat. She called back in reply, telling whoever it was that she was back. Footsteps approached the door, and an elderly woman of a deep blue colour - Ianto assumed her to be the same species as Ophelia - appeared.
"Oh ... hello? Mr. Jones, isn't it?"
"Yes. You are ... ?"
"Ophelia's grandma-ma. Has she been good?"
"She's been perfect. I was just telling her she's welcome to come 'round and play any time."
The old woman's face cracked into a smile. "Good girl."
"Well," sighed Ianto. "We better be off." He ruffled Giacomo's hair, the boy still leaning casually in the doorframe and trying to keep Opehlia's attention on him. He shook off Ianto's hand, remembered Shirley and reached up for.
"This is my dog, Mrs. Hunt!" he grinned. "My dads got her for me. And my coat!"
"That's a very posh coat," smiled Ophelia's grandma-ma. "but we shall let you go. Say 'thank you' and 'goodbye', Leah."
"Thanks for having me. Bye bye!" she waved.
"See you later," Giacomo grinned, trying to make Shirley perch on his shoulder like a pirate's parrot.
"Goodbye, Mrs. Hunt. Bye, Ophelia," smiled Ianto.
They turned to leave as the door closed, and Giacomo skipped ahead a little bit so he could practise his swish when he doubled back.
"So ..." Ianto cleared his throat. "... Ophelia is a very lovely little girl."
"Mm? Yeah," Giacomo agreed.
"Do you ... y'know ... like her?"
Giacomo nodded, then spun on the spot to make his coat fan out.
"Do you ... 'like her' like her?"
At this, Giacomo looked like a deer in the headlights. His eyes widened, and a blush creeped over his cheeks. Ianto felt a smile spreading over his own features, as Giacomo became very interested in Shirley.
"She is a very lovely girl. And very pretty."
"She don't like me," Giacomo replied shortly. "Like ... 'like me' like me."
"Why wouldn't she?"
"Because she's lovely and pretty and popular and I'm not."
Ianto blinked. "Giacomo ... you do realise that when you grow up, you're going to look almost exactly like your father? You're already looking like him now!"
They were climbing the stairs now, and Giacomo was only just bringing his attention away from Shirley. "I do?"
"Yes, Giacomo. You do," Ianto sighed, wondering what sort of monster he might be creating should Giacomo really grow up to be exactly like his dad - in both mannerisms and vanity.
"But ... when Dad looks at people, they blush. Or run and hide."
"You're only a baby, Giacomo. Give it time. I'm sure you'll develop those mystical skills in about ten years."
"Ten years! I have to wait ten years!"
Ianto muttered to himself so low Giacomo probably didn't hear, "... it'd be twenty if it was up to me ...."
Back at the flat, they found Jack dancing around a bit with Ian in his arms, but Annabel and Elaine were nowhere to be found. Rhys and Till still hadn't resurfaced, either. "Where's Elaine?" asked Ianto, crouching down to help unbutton Giacomo's coat.
"She's taking Annabel to the cinema, so I said I'd watch Ian for a couple of hours," explained Jack, tickling Ian again. Little Jack eyed the baby dubiously.
Ianto stood and narrowed his eyes, hanging up the coat. "You've not arranged for him to sleep over, have you?"
"Nope - but I could?" Jack suggested, his expression a smidgen hopeful.
Clearing his throat, Ianto folded his arms. "One step at a time?" he offered.
Jack grinned at him. "Here: hold this!"
He all but shoved Ian into Ianto's arms, then stood and scooped up Giacomo. "Hey you, birthday boy! You had a good day?"
Ianto held the baby awkwardly.
Ianto looked at Ian, and Ian looked at Ianto.
"Um ... hi?"
Ian blinked a couple of times, putting his fist in his mouth and still staring at Ianto.
"Erm ...."
Ianto thought back to what Jack did when he was given the baby.
Tickling.
Right.
Ianto could tickle.
He wiggled his fingers over Ian's belly, and the baby squirmed and giggled and gurgled delightedly. Glancing over, Ianto could see Jack and Giacomo testing out the new pencil crayons on the floor, wrapped up in themselves. He gave Ian another doubtful look, then flinched as a tiny fist collided with his chin before it tried to pinch and tug at his face.
"Hey, hey, hey ... you. Don't do that, sweetheart."
He held the baby on his hip with one hand and felt the firm grip of Ian's fist round his fingers with the other. Ian yawned, his head lolling forward and resting on Ianto's shoulder, and softly Ianto rocked him, still awkward and unsure. Steady breathing and a slight snuffle, a relax in grip and a limp-bodied baby told him he'd done something right, and he felt a warm fuzzy feeling inside.
Maybe babies aren't so bad, he pondered, walking carefully to the couch and sitting down slowly, trying not to disturb Ian. In fact ... he is cute. And cuddly. And ....
Ian's eyes suddenly flew open wide, and he promptly threw up all down the front of Ianto's shirt, scrunched up his face and starting wailing at the top of his tiny lungs.
Ianto was too mortified to move.
"Jack," he called weakly. "Jack ... I really think you want your son back ...."
Late that night, Ianto was sat at Jack's office computer opening the search box for the finalised lists. It didn't take long to find Ophelia Hunt and change her prospected location to somewhere nearer where their new house was going to be, and he covered his tracks by making sure he switched someone into hers and her grandma-ma's old place so there were no double-bookings.
Ianto liked to think he was a 'good judge of character', and he had judged Ophelia favourably.
He had made sure that the Captain had definitely put Rhys and Till together and local, then thought for a good five minutes about whether or not six was too early to start matchmaking for Giacomo.
To hell with it, he decided, and clicked 'Save'. Pleased with himself, Ianto shut down the computer, leaned back in Jack's chair and waited for the lights to blink out.
The buses would be able to fit a hundred people on each, plus their luggage - or so Jack said.
Looking at them now, Ianto wasn't quite so sure. It looked like it might be a smidgen crowded on the huge, metal, floating cockroaches that loomed up toward the School at an ominously slow speed. He and Giacomo were watching from the window - as was everyone else, Ianto didn't doubt.
Five of them were due today, then in a week another five.
Then it would be only the last few stragglers remaining - himself, Jack and Giacomo included - to sort out the any final niggling things before being taken away themselves.
They were still in their pyjamas, having been awoken by the sound of a foghorn that had sounded a helluva lot closer than he would have thought. Jack had already been up - he probably hadn't slept the night before (in fact, he'd hardly slept since the day after Giacomo's birthday party, when he'd published the lists. Of course, a few people weren't going to be happy - and of course, it was all the Captain's fault) - and Ianto was fairly certain that should he go upstairs now, he'd find Jack in his office staring into space, wondering why he hadn't been able to fix everything.
Giacomo pushed Ianto's arm aside so that he could climb onto his lap and cuddle. "I don't want everything to change," he murmured quietly.
Ianto brushed his hair out of his eyes, and gave him his best reassuring smile. "Maybe everything will change for the better?"
"Mmm," he agreed, though he sounded doubtful. "Maybe."
They sat and watched a while longer, until the first few people were being shepherded out and filing onto buses. All of them were reluctant to go, walking slowly, and each of them gave one last, rueful glance to the old building before climbing onto their designated bus and disappearing into the metal belly, waiting to be taken away.
"Can we do some colouring in now?" Giacomo asked.
"Yeah," nodded Ianto.
They sat cross-legged on the living room floor, and Giacomo got out his pencils.
I did it again! Sorry for the so long chapters - I just get going with this one and don't realise how long it goes on for!
I've actually cut this one down - you can have the Return of the Mysterious Puzzlebox and the Pesky Lawyers next time!
Next Part | Previous Part | Torchwood Index | Request a Convo/Prose Fic
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 04:47 am (UTC)don't apologise for long chapters - they just mean more epic reading!
that sounds like a great party ( lord knows kids parties are hard enough to organise) - and it's so cute that everyone of little jack's friends fancies Jack.
i feel Ianto's pain - babysitting = a lot of baby vomit covered shirts/pants/whatever else you are wearing.
that was fantastic, can't wait until next update
x
no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 04:49 am (UTC)that previous comment was from me
sorry XD
no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 05:16 am (UTC)I still want a hamster dog. And my own little!Jack. And a dinosaur. XD
no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 05:22 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 09:36 am (UTC)Alan Grant is my hero. When I was little he was my idol, and when I discovered he wasn't real, it was a pretty huge blow! The way he deals with that obnoxious brat in the opening sequence of Jurassic Park is just awesome - and I love that despite the whole 'awww Timmy and Lex asleep on me' thing in the helichopter at the end of the film, in Jurassic Park III we discover he still hates kids. HA.
*sorry mini-squee over Dr. Grant over*
no subject
Date: 2010-05-02 02:19 am (UTC)YAAAAY! Nobody over here even remembers Jurassic Park! If they do, it's like, "Didn't that come out a billion years ago?" Bah. HAHAHA! Yes, "You're still alive when they start to eat you." That was awesome. I've wanted to do that to many kids.
LOL! Don't apologize for squee!
no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 06:14 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 06:38 am (UTC)Thank you for a brilliant start to my day... xxx
no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 06:58 am (UTC)Ianto's reaction to holding Ian was precious... until Ian threw up all over him. lol Poor Ianto.
no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 09:02 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 10:56 am (UTC)You wrote the birthday perfectly. Can't wait to see what'll happen with those lawyers.
I was so very happy to see an update, and LOVEd it (as usual), and it gave me the perfect break from studying for my exam, which is in...eeeeep! 5 hours! *goes back to her history of history*
no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 11:37 am (UTC)John, that bastard. Is it weird that I still find him totally sexy, even when he's being a sort-of pedo kind-of? Yeah, probably a bad thing.
Also, little!coat scene was adorable. The jumping-up-and-down, screaming i-love-it-i-love-it-i-love-it...takes me back to Christmas with my little brother. Totally true to life.
no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 03:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-04-29 05:07 pm (UTC)I see Jack managed to regress to an even more childlike state...when your six year old son is behaving more maturely than you are, it's
time to misbehave some more. And nearly everybody is happy...which means certain doom must be on the horizon. Yay?no subject
Date: 2010-04-30 10:34 am (UTC)Awwwww, Giacomo finally got Shirley :D