Ianto's Journey, Part V-Redemption, Chapter 72 Results

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IANTO'S JOURNEY, PART V- REDEMPTION
TITLE:   Chapter 72 - Results
AUTHOR: Aviv_b
RATING: Chapter 72- PG - a few sexual references
CHARACTERS::  Ianto,  Aaron, Jack, Jonathan, the Brigadier
DISCLAIMER:  Not mine; Aunty B's and RTD's
WORDS: ~ 2040
SUMMARY:  Ianto and Aaron come back to London to find some startling changes have taken place.

Title is from: I've always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. Michael Jordan

Ianto's Journey begins here: http://aviv-b.livejournal.com/1972.html
All Chapter are linked.

 

When they finally returned to London in early 2026, Ianto and Aaron knew that their work had moved the people of Earth a long way towards being ready for the changes that were coming very soon.  For once, both UNIT and Torchwood seemed to be working in sync with very little discord.

 

Ianto and Aaron discovered that three monumental changes had occurred while they had been away from London.  Dr. Martin’s team had had some success with the ‘rift return project’ and they were now starting to send visitors back through the rift.  The biggest hurdle had been how to track whether the return trips were sending the aliens back to the right vectors on the time/space continuum.

 

The Doctor as well as John Hart traveled to the same coordinates as those where the aliens were sent and verified that the coordinates were accurate 85% of the time. Naturally, it could be disastrous for the 15% who ended in the wrong time or wrong place or both, but the Torchwood research teams were confident they could refine the technology to upwards of 95%. 

 

Of course this didn’t solve the problem of what to do with aliens when they didn’t know where and when they came from, but they were developing a second program that plotted time/space trajectories of aliens that came through the rift.  The program was only about 70% accurate but Tosh and her team were working furiously to refine the calculations and improve the outcomes.

 

The second change was a shock to both of them.  Alonso Frame was gone.  Bored with 21^st Century Earth he had taken the opportunity to hitch a ride on John Hart’s vortex manipulator into the far future and had gone to work for the Time Agency.  Jack was alone once again and the Doctor was not happy about this development. But the Doctor reckoned that at least working for the Time Agency would keep Alonso from corrupting any timelines. Both Aaron and Ianto were upset to see how lonely Jack’s existence had become. He wasn’t even out trying to find anyone new either for a quick shag or something more lasting.

 

The third change also involved a personal relationship. It turned out Stephen was also at loose ends as Becca, his live-in partner of six years had left him several months earlier.  He seemed to be holding up well enough but they worried that if Stephen got depressed he might revert to drinking.

 

“You know, we could start a weekly poker game,” Aaron suggested.

 

‘How about dinner and poker?’ Ianto added. ‘Should help a little, maybe keep them from being so lonely.’

 

And so the weekly Hamilton-Jones spaghetti and poker night began.  Schedules permitting, they’d meet around 7 PM, have a quick dinner and play poker for a couple of hours.  They’d argue about politics, and talk about sports (well Ianto and Stephen did) and gossip about UNIT’s activities.  Jack, of course, could always be counted on to supply an outrageous story or two.

 

“I remember one time; I was on a space station just beyond Europa and was introduced to this gorgeous female alien with three eyes and three legs and three….”

 

‘Jack, please,’ Ianto interjected, ‘we’re eating dinner here. No stories involving alien private parts.’

 

“When did you get to be such a prude?” Jack teased.

 

Aaron laughed, “It’s me actually.  I’m just not at all interested in female alien private parts.”  Aaron waited just a moment and then continued, “But if you have some good tentacle stories, I’d be up for that.”

 

Stephen chocked a bit on his spaghetti and Jack had to hit him on the back several times clear his airway. “Aaron, when did you get to be so raunchy? I don’t ever remember you ever making an off-color remark,” Stephen noted.

 

“It’s all Ianto and J.J.Jack’s fault.  They’ve been a very bad influence on me.”

 

‘Not to mention John Hart,’ Ianto added.

 

***

While the years following right after Aaron and Ianto’s return to London were largely happy, there were moments of sadness as well.  Less than a year after their return, Shayna’s health took a turn for the worse.  Her arthritis became so severe that walking became painful.  She couldn’t go up steps anymore so Ianto or Aaron had to carry her up every night to their bedroom on the second floor.  They were able to keep her comfortable for a while with increased acupuncture and NASIDs, but she was having more bad days than good. 

 

By May of 2027, Ianto felt it was time to consider putting her to sleep. Aaron resisted at first, but came to the same conclusion by July.  On a bright sunny morning they took her for a last walk, fed her some roast beef they had bought as a special treat the day before and waited for the vet to arrive.  Aaron sat with Shayna’s head in his lap while Ianto stroked her body as the vet gave her the injections.  She stared straight up at Aaron’s face as he spoke to her softly in Hebrew telling her what a good dog she was and how much he loved her. Finally her eyes closed, she took a hiccupping breath and died. Both Aaron and Ianto cried and the vet cried right along with them.  They had adopted Shayna when she was four years old and she had been with them just past her sixteenth birthday.

 

‘It is almost like losing a child,’ Ianto told Jack a few weeks later. ‘She was with us for more than half our time together, so coming home to a house without a wagging tail to greet us feels very wrong.’

 

Jack was surprised that Ianto and Aaron weren’t planning on getting another dog.

 

'Aaron just turned sixty and I’ll be forty-four in August. Aaron’s afraid that he’s getting too old to get up early and walk a dog and I am just not a morning person.'

 

Jack laughed. “Well some things really don’t change.”

 

‘Yeah, we are thinking about another pet, one that doesn’t require as much exercise,   particularly early morning outdoor exercise. We’ve considered a cat or a rabbit but Aaron just isn’t ready yet.’

 

Ianto had always wondered if Jack had ever had a companion animal. This seemed like as good a time as any to ask. 

 

“If I tell you, you have to promise not to laugh,” Jack warned him.

 

Ianto promised.

 

“Before our planet was invaded I had a pet pig named Petri.”

 

Ianto snorted.

 

“Yeah go ahead and snort, I knew you would.  Pigs are actually very intelligent and clean animals.  Very social and good natured too.  Petri knew as many commands as most dogs and she was a great companion.  She was killed when the invasion happened, and I just never wanted to get emotionally attached to a pet again. I lost my brother and my father that day as well, and it probably sounds odd, but I think I’ve missed Petri as much over the years as I’ve missed my Father and Gray.”

 

Ianto nodded his understanding. It explained a lot actually.  If Jack was still hurting over a pet lost long-ago, he could see where the thought of losing another loved one would be unbearable for him.  It probably went a long way in explaining why Jack never wanted to get too involved with any of his lovers or get overly attached.

 

When he later told Aaron about his conversation with Jack, Aaron was noticeably upset. Not to mention surprised by Aaron’s declaration.

 

“We’ve got to be better friends to J.J.Jack. Spend more time with him. Make sure he has people to be with on holidays. He saved both of us, and it’s j.j.just a small act of kindness to make sure he’s not lonely.”

 

Ianto agreed that Aaron was right, and so they did.

***

Not long after, the Brigadier who was almost eighty suffered several serious falls and ended up confined to a wheelchair.  He refused to move out of his home, so Aaron and Stephen had hired full time live-in help to care for him.  He was so difficult to deal with that the help turned over every few months.  Finally, Stephen decided that he would move back into the family home and supervise the Brigadier’s care. After much initial grumbling from the Brigadier, things finally settled down to where there wasn’t a crisis every other day at his house.

 

“I can’t believe you moved back in with him,” Aaron said at their weekly poker game. “Are to you trying to get a medal or nominated for sainthood? Or are you just trying to make me look like the bad son.”

 

“Well you are the bad son,” Stephen quipped. “I remember when you first came to live with us; Father was terrified that you would be such a bad influence. And Mother thought Bryan and I would both become gay because of you.”

 

Aaron laughed.  “And look how well that worked out.”

 

Jack snorted. “I’m always amazed that people still believe that. You’d think by the middle of the 21^st century this planet would be a little more evolved.”

 

‘I figure by the time we get to the 22^nd century people are going to be bombarded with information about alien cultures and they won’t worry so much about human behavior anymore,’ Ianto said.

 

‘No,’ Jack thought. ‘That won’t happen to the middle of the 23^rd century, unfortunately. They’ll be small periods of tolerance followed by longer periods of fearful clinging to outdated beliefs and behaviors.’

 

“You’ll get there eventually, but not without some turmoil,” Jack said out loud. “And that’s all I’m saying.”

 

‘Hey, speaking of turmoil has anyone heard anything from Bryan,’ Ianto asked.

 

“Yeah, Father got a card from him around Christmas. He’s on his fourth wife and has, I think, twelve children total. Still living in Australia in a caravan. And in deference to his and my mother, all I can say is thank goodness Aaron wasn’t a bad influence on him.”

 

Aaron snorted. “Yeah, I did my best, but it j.j.just didn’t work. Particularly the part about using protection.”  Everyone laughed.

 

“You know, you’re the only one of us who has been in a stable long-term relationship,” Stephen pointed out to Aaron.

 

‘Two actually,’ Ianto corrected. ‘Almost fifteen years with Geoffrey and more than twenty years for us.’

 

“Well it’s certainly the Hamilton side of the family that’s the problem,” Aaron pointed out. “Mother was remarried for almost thirty years when her husband Giora died a few years ago. And Tamara got married a bit late, but she’s been married for, what, I think about fifteen years. Only my oldest step sister Rachel never married. She never was very interested in being in a relationship.  Not sure why, but she seems to be happy enough with her full professorship in aeronautics at Tel Aviv University.”

 

“So one more hand, or should we call it a night?” Jack asked.

 

“Bit tired, actually,” Stephen replied. “Taking care of Father while my irresponsible brother has a real life is very tiring.”

 

Aaron rolled his eyes. “Seriously, Stephen, if it’s too much…”

 

“Oh stop it; I’m just having some fun with you. He has round the clock caregivers, so I’m just there to run interference if there’s a problem or someone doesn’t show up. That old house of his is so big that I could go days with not seeing him if I chose.  My computer consulting work keeps me pretty busy and it’s actually easier to live with Father.  Hell, free laundry service, meals cooked, its almost as good as being married but without the hassle.”

 

“But also without the sex,” Jack pointed out.

 

“Well there is that. But one of the nurses is quite cute…”

 

‘Stop. This is getting way too Upstairs/Downstairs for me. Not to be rude, but it’s almost midnight and some of us have to work tomorrow.  And I have just the meanest boss who won’t like it if I’m not on time.’

 

“Oi. I’m a very nice boss,” Jack protested.

 

‘Yes you are,’ Aaron replied as he and Ianto both hugged Jack.

 

Stephen smiled to himself. ‘I never thought I’d see the day when the three of them would be friends. Really good friends.’

 

‘The best of friends,’ Ianto and Aaron thought. 

Chapter 73 is here: http://aviv-b.livejournal.com/43335.html