donutsweeper (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
donutsweeper) wrote2007-07-05 10:37 pm
donutsweeper) wrote2007-07-05 10:37 pm
Bleak Prospects
Title/Series Info: Bleak Prospects
Pairing: Jack/Ianto implied
Rating/Warning: Vague spoilers from DW series 3
Summary: Ianto tries to find out what's been bothering Jack
Word Count: 752
Author's Notes: slightly inspired by the ficathon atnotsobigheaded un-betaed so please forgive any errors
"So, he said you can't die?" Ianto asked as he handed Jack a cup of coffee.
It was a few days after Jack returned, but it was the first time Ianto had finally been able to get Jack to stop, and sit and begin to talk about what was bothering him. The rest of the team had been sent home and Ianto was with Jack in his office, trying to break through the wall of despair and disillusion that Jack had built up while he was away.
"Not only that I can't die, but I will never die." Jack didn't notice the coffee cup as he set it down on the desk; he barely even registered Ianto's existence.
Ianto's heart ached at the tone of Jack's voice, so lost and so incredibly alone. "Oh...Jack." he sighed.
"Everyone and everything will die around me and I'll have to watch. I'll have to watch others live and love and die all around me and I'll never be able to be a part of that..." Jack's voice trailed off as he sat, shoulders slumped in defeat, his hands absentmindedly curled around the cooling cup. He didn't respond when Ianto hesitantly reached out across the desk to stroke his arm.
"Eventually I'll age... and wither..." Jack continued with a vague shudder, "but I'll never die..." his voice was barely above a whisper, "never ever... 'cause I'm wrong."
"Wrong?" Ianto slammed his fist on the desk. "Wrong?" Jack tilted his head away, not able to look Ianto in the eye.
"Look at me sir." Ianto said, with steel in his voice. "Jack, look at me." Then, with more force then he probably intended, Ianto grabbed Jack's face in his hands preventing him from hiding anymore. There were tears in the older man's eyes. "There is absolutely nothing 'wrong' about you. That man" he said the word with terrible disdain, "that man has no idea what he's talking about!"
Jack barely choked back a sob. "But he's..."
"No," Ianto interrupted, "I don't care who he is." He brushed away a tear as it slipped down Jack's cheek. "Maybe it is true, that you'll never die. But that doesn’t mean you can’t ever love, and you should, if you do then no one you love will ever die. They'll live through you, in your memories, in your stories." He paused, keeping eye contact. "I can just see it now, two hundred, no, two thousand years from now you chatting up some gorgeous thing with stories of your adventures in Torchwood." He grinned, and was rewarded with a half smile in return.
"Besides, he doesn't know everything, does he? He didn't know you worked here till you told him."
"That's true," there was the slightest tremor of hope in the response that only someone who knew Jack as well as Ianto did could have noticed.
“And he certainly doesn’t know everything abut you. He calls you Jack, right? So he has no idea what your real name is,“ Ianto paused, noticing the momentary panic as Jack processed what he meant, “Tosh told us, but we already knew there was no record of a Jack Harkness in the UK after one night in 1941 so it wasn’t that hard to figure out. It’s okay, really,” he said forcefully, “you being an enigma is part of the fun!”
Jack smiled, perhaps not one of his full-on thousand watt Hollywood smiles, but a truly honest smile nonetheless. “Before I left,” he began quietly, “well, I did have some fun with him. I was leaving, and I didn’t want to seem so desperate, so useless…” the words started flowing more quickly now, “so I told a little lie, made him think it was me behind the reveal of some big secret. I didn’t hang around to see his reaction.”
“But I bet he bought it hook, line and sinker, which is just what you wanted, right?” Ianto laughed at the sheepish grin Jack gave in reply.
Ianto gently pried the coffee cup free so he could take Jack's hands in his own and pulled Jack to his feet. "The Doctor's made mistakes before, you said so yourself. You need to move on... to move past what he told you. You are not ‘wrong’ not in the slightest bit, trust me on this!" He slowly slipped his hand around Jack's waist. "Now what do you say we go make some new memories for you?"
"Ianto!" Jack sputtered, but allowed himself to be docilely led away.
Pairing: Jack/Ianto implied
Rating/Warning: Vague spoilers from DW series 3
Summary: Ianto tries to find out what's been bothering Jack
Word Count: 752
Author's Notes: slightly inspired by the ficathon at
notsobigheaded un-betaed so please forgive any errors"So, he said you can't die?" Ianto asked as he handed Jack a cup of coffee.
It was a few days after Jack returned, but it was the first time Ianto had finally been able to get Jack to stop, and sit and begin to talk about what was bothering him. The rest of the team had been sent home and Ianto was with Jack in his office, trying to break through the wall of despair and disillusion that Jack had built up while he was away.
"Not only that I can't die, but I will never die." Jack didn't notice the coffee cup as he set it down on the desk; he barely even registered Ianto's existence.
Ianto's heart ached at the tone of Jack's voice, so lost and so incredibly alone. "Oh...Jack." he sighed.
"Everyone and everything will die around me and I'll have to watch. I'll have to watch others live and love and die all around me and I'll never be able to be a part of that..." Jack's voice trailed off as he sat, shoulders slumped in defeat, his hands absentmindedly curled around the cooling cup. He didn't respond when Ianto hesitantly reached out across the desk to stroke his arm.
"Eventually I'll age... and wither..." Jack continued with a vague shudder, "but I'll never die..." his voice was barely above a whisper, "never ever... 'cause I'm wrong."
"Wrong?" Ianto slammed his fist on the desk. "Wrong?" Jack tilted his head away, not able to look Ianto in the eye.
"Look at me sir." Ianto said, with steel in his voice. "Jack, look at me." Then, with more force then he probably intended, Ianto grabbed Jack's face in his hands preventing him from hiding anymore. There were tears in the older man's eyes. "There is absolutely nothing 'wrong' about you. That man" he said the word with terrible disdain, "that man has no idea what he's talking about!"
Jack barely choked back a sob. "But he's..."
"No," Ianto interrupted, "I don't care who he is." He brushed away a tear as it slipped down Jack's cheek. "Maybe it is true, that you'll never die. But that doesn’t mean you can’t ever love, and you should, if you do then no one you love will ever die. They'll live through you, in your memories, in your stories." He paused, keeping eye contact. "I can just see it now, two hundred, no, two thousand years from now you chatting up some gorgeous thing with stories of your adventures in Torchwood." He grinned, and was rewarded with a half smile in return.
"Besides, he doesn't know everything, does he? He didn't know you worked here till you told him."
"That's true," there was the slightest tremor of hope in the response that only someone who knew Jack as well as Ianto did could have noticed.
“And he certainly doesn’t know everything abut you. He calls you Jack, right? So he has no idea what your real name is,“ Ianto paused, noticing the momentary panic as Jack processed what he meant, “Tosh told us, but we already knew there was no record of a Jack Harkness in the UK after one night in 1941 so it wasn’t that hard to figure out. It’s okay, really,” he said forcefully, “you being an enigma is part of the fun!”
Jack smiled, perhaps not one of his full-on thousand watt Hollywood smiles, but a truly honest smile nonetheless. “Before I left,” he began quietly, “well, I did have some fun with him. I was leaving, and I didn’t want to seem so desperate, so useless…” the words started flowing more quickly now, “so I told a little lie, made him think it was me behind the reveal of some big secret. I didn’t hang around to see his reaction.”
“But I bet he bought it hook, line and sinker, which is just what you wanted, right?” Ianto laughed at the sheepish grin Jack gave in reply.
Ianto gently pried the coffee cup free so he could take Jack's hands in his own and pulled Jack to his feet. "The Doctor's made mistakes before, you said so yourself. You need to move on... to move past what he told you. You are not ‘wrong’ not in the slightest bit, trust me on this!" He slowly slipped his hand around Jack's waist. "Now what do you say we go make some new memories for you?"
"Ianto!" Jack sputtered, but allowed himself to be docilely led away.