Binding part 1 of 2
May. 8th, 2010 08:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
czarina_kittyTitle: Binding part 1 of 2
Author: czarina_kitty
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters/Pairing: Ianto Jones/Jack Harkness, Owen, Toshiko, Suzie, Gwen, the Doctor
Rating: R
Warnings: swearing, character death (canon)
Prompt: Torchwood, Jack/Ianto, Post-Cyberwoman. On the surface Jack is all comfort and forgiveness. However it's all a carefully constructed plan to tie Ianto to him as he doesn't take to being betrayed and being made to look a fool at all well. A long fic is preferred and no sexual relationship between them prior to Cyberwoman.
Summary: Jack wants Ianto, every piece of him.
Disclaimer: I do not own, or make any money from the use of, these characters.
Notes: Written for the open/amnesty round at dark_fest. The prompt, coupled with a quote from Cyberwoman that I always thought hinted at something else, lead to this.
Spoilers: Yes. All of series 1 & 2, plus COE.
Jack Harkness has been called many things in his long life. Some good, some bad. Some true, some not. Some that he makes an effort to show, some that he makes an effort to hide. Having those around him think, for example, that he is stupid, unobservant, and oblivious has advantages. Letting them all think that their secrets are safe, that he does not know what was happening in his own base, his own home, allows him to gather information about them, to use what he knows to his advantage, and to bind each of them tighter to himself.
The idea that he had not known what was being hidden in his basement is ridiculous. But he allows them all to believe that he is as surprised as anyone. That he had been duped as much as he rest of them by the quiet, unassuming young man. The young man currently sobbing, knelt on the floor in the middle of an ever widening pool of blood. He allowed them to believe that none of this was planned, that this had not been deliberately set up. None of them would ever know that he had discovered the conversion unit and its still mostly human occupant months ago or that she might have been saved at that point. That Jack had carefully, and secretly, intervened, made sure that she was too far gone to be saved, made sure that Ianto’s search for an expert was directed towards someone who would not help so much as hinder.
**********
Jack knows the first time they meet that Ianto is desperate, that he is looking for something, or someone. Perhaps he is looking for a lover, perhaps a father figure. It doesn’t really matter exactly what role Ianto is looking for someone to fill, only that he seems to believe that Jack can fill it. Whatever he is looking for, Ianto appears willing to do whatever it takes. The studded belt highlighted by the slight jut of the hips is a dead give away, a clear signal of what he is willing to give in exchange for what he thinks he needs. But, as much as Jack wants to slide that belt from the loops, push this young man against the nearest tree, and give him what he is so clearly asking for, there is no reason to make this easy, and every reason to let the young man work for it. Let him think he is the one manipulating the situation. The fact that he seems to know a bit too much about the alien population makes Jack wary and cautious. But, Jack has his name and that is all he really needs, it’s enough to research him and find Ianto again later.
When the first record Jack finds of Ianto Jones is a Torchwood London employee file he is intrigued. There had only been a handful of survivors and most of those were putting as much distance between themselves and Torchwood as was humanly possible. When Jack discovers the file has been tampered with, that someone has gone to a good deal of trouble to change the contents of the file and had done an expert job at covering their tracks, he is impressed. Jack doubts that even Toshiko would have found the alterations, but Jack has spent too much time hiding secrets of his own to be fooled. When Jack discovers Ianto’s true list of skills and qualifications, his accurate education records, and his personal history, he knows this is someone he wants as part of his team. The young man is clearly smart, able to work under pressure, good in an emergency, and lacking in any strong familial attachments. In short, he is perfect for Jack’s purposes. Some one who can be molded into the person Jack wants him to be. Now Jack just needs to find him again.
Unless, that is, Ianto finds him first. This time, the belt is gone, but the necklace sends much the same message. This time Ianto appears desperate to please, always a good sign, as is the quick response of “deceased” when his girlfriend is mentioned. Jack already knows, of course, that she was on the list of the dead from Canary Wharf, but hearing Ianto say it, hearing him admit that she was not a rival for his attention, is an indication that his loyalty can ultimately be to Jack, and Jack alone. And there is just that little bit of fight in Ianto when Jack walks away, that restraining hand on his chest. But Jack resists the urge to wrap his fingers around the exposed flesh of Ianto’s neck, to mark him physically, and stake his claim. He is careful not to give any indication that he is aware of the subterfuge regarding Ianto’s files and not to appear to be giving in too easily. If Jack hopes to make this work on his terms, Ianto needs to try just a bit harder.
The third time they meet, there is something different about Ianto and it isn’t just the clothes. He is still desperate, that much is obvious, but oddly there is less submission in him, more fight. By the time he has rolled their bodies over, placing himself on top of Jack rather than the other way around, Jack is impressed all over again. A little bit of struggle for dominance is a good thing, the submission all the sweeter when it is earned rather than given, the bindings all the tighter after being struggled against. The hook is well and truly sunk and it is time to start reeling him in. Ianto is ready to give Jack his dedication.
“Report for work first thing tomorrow morning.”
**********
Jack is the one waiting just outside the door of the tourist office this time. When Ianto arrives dressed in a pinstriped black suit, maroon silk shirt, and black tie, Jack almost drools at the sight. But, again, there is something different about Ianto. The desperation is gone and the flirtatious banter is absent, replaced by an impersonal, professional mask.
Deciding that a little bit of show is in order Jack takes Ianto around to the invisible lift and watches his reaction carefully as they descend into the Hub. Ianto does not seem as impressed as Jack would like him to be and he does not react to the tour of the main area any more than a curt nod here and a polite question there. Jack notes what he thinks is a slight flinch as they pass the cells and a spark of interest at the entrance to the archives.
“What’s down these tunnels?” Ianto asks as they continue further into the reaches of the complex, the slight rise in his vocal tone tipping Jack off that the question is something less than completely innocent. Ianto is not nearly as good at hiding his reactions as he thinks he is, which makes learning his tells all the easier.
“Nothing of interest,” Jack says smoothly, the same answer he has given every new employee going back for decades. “Mostly empty rooms. Storage space, old equipment and the like. No one comes down here much. We’re well out under the Bay here, so things get a little damp. The moisture messes with CCTV and the comms tend to go in and out. I really should just seal off the whole area one of these days.” This is a lie. Not about the space being mostly unused, or about being under the bay, but about no one coming down here and the CCTV not functioning. Jack knows that every member of his team comes down here from time to time, that they all think that they are the only one and that they all believe he is oblivious. Not one of them has ever considered that the cameras they can see might just be there to distract them from the ones they can’t see. For a group of geniuses, they can be very stupid at times. Not that it’s their fault, really, it’s just that when you have spent your life being smarter than everyone you meet, it’s hard to image anyone might outsmart you. But Jack isn’t just anyone and no one is better qualified to spot a lie than he is. He has spent too many years playing this game to be taken by a group of amateurs. They may think they have the upper hand, but you can’t con a con man.
Jack knows each of them harbor secrets. He knows that each of them have taken a small area of this supposedly unused and unmonitored area for their own purposes and that each has a collection of alien tech that has somehow gone missing from the archives. Owen has squirreled away an interesting assortment of medical instruments and alien sex toys, as well as the Retcon required to tie up loose ends after he brings any overly trusting shag down here. Not that Jack minds, having done his share of the love ‘em and drug ‘em scene. Toshiko has amassed a library of rare alien texts that should be in the secure archives and a small pile of artifacts that she has been told are too dangerous for her to tinker with. Not that any of them really are all that dangerous, most being nothing more that sex toys Owen has failed to identify, although Jack had managed to slide one or two of his pet projects into her pile. Suzie keeps a collection of weapons and artifacts that she thinks will help her in her quest for immortality, clearly the most dangerous of the lot, but as long as Jack pays careful attention he should be able to head off any problems before they become too serious. Allowing each of them to have their secret projects gives him something to hold over them, should he ever need it. Allowing them to think he doesn’t know gives each of them the confidence to drop their guard in other areas. Jack suspects that Ianto will be claiming his own space down here, and Ianto’s not-quite-as-subtle-as-he-thinks scan for cameras confirms this.
The rest of the tour is uneventful. Ianto is introduced to the rest of the team, none of whom show the least bit of interest. Ianto isn’t the first new play toy Jack has tried to impress with the grand tour and he won’t be the last. If the pattern holds, Ianto will be Retconned and forgotten about come morning, leaving Jack with yet another story of sexual conquest. Owen, Tosh, and Suzie have learned not to get attached too quickly and despite Jack’s assurances that Ianto is a new employee, not a one night stand, they remain distant.
Ianto is quickly settled into a day of making coffee, picking up discarded pizza and take-away boxes, trying to divine any sense of order to the archives, and generally trying to blend into the background. Jack ostensibly leaves Ianto to his own devices for most of the day, but keeps a close eye on him over the CCTV trying to work out exactly what it is his newest employee is hiding.
Jack is surprised when Ianto leaves for the evening without having ventured into the lower levels. An hour later, however, when Jack checks the CCTV coverage from his hidden cameras, he watches Ianto enter through a hidden access tunnel linked directly to the lower levels, an entrance that Jack had been sure until now that no one else living knew of. He watches as Ianto explores the tunnels, wanders from room to empty room before leaving the same way he had arrived.
The next day is just as uneventful. There are a few small rift flares, but they are easily dealt with by Jack, Suzie, and Owen, while Toshiko and Ianto remain behind to coordinate. It is long after everyone has left for the night when the alarm in the lower tunnels tips Jack off that Ianto has returned.
“Well, well, well, Mr. Jones,” Jack mutters to himself. “What are we hiding?”
Jack watches as Ianto begins moves several large metal boxes into the sub-basement. He briefly considered making popcorn and settling in to watch the show, but he is thrown off kilter when he recognizes exactly what it is that Ianto is moving in. Clearly Ianto is going to require a little bit more supervision that the rest of the team, a whole lot of planning to keep anyone else from getting hurt, and a little finesse to gain Ianto’s loyalty.
**********
It isn’t until Suzie’s extra-curricular activities are exposed that Jack realizes his focus has been too divided. He has spent too much time distracted from one threat by another. He knew about the murders, of course, and didn’t really care all that much, but he had underestimated Suzie’s zeal and dedication. He had allowed things to progress as far as they had in the vain hope that something in Suzie’s search for immortality would offer a cure for his. As he cleans out the space she claimed downstairs, returning items to their rightful places, he wonders idly if he is letting things go too far with Ianto’s little project.
Jack’s decision to recruit Gwen is at least as much about her not having a hidden agenda as it is about her skill set. He really doesn’t have the time to watch another team member that closely. She already has a crush on him, which he can use to keep her interested without much effort on his part. The boyfriend on the side could complicate things, but at least he can count on her to go home at night and not sneak back in later.
Jack wanders further down the dark hallway to get an up close look at the cyber-conversion unit and its sleeping occupant, something he has not bothered to do before now. Ianto calls her Lisa when he visits and Jack can see why Ianto thinks she can be saved. The conversion process is less than half complete and, with the proper knowledge and the tools contained in the unit, just might be undone. But that would not advance Jack’s purpose, would not help him to drawn in this elusive and aloof young man. He may have only recently meet Ianto, but he is not about to lose him to the not-as-deceased-as-advertised ex.. Jack needs to insure that Ianto’s efforts to save her will be for naught, and that his betrayal will be brought to light in a public manner. It’s an easy matter of tinkering with the technology and replacing the medications Ianto has taken to stealing from the med bay with others from archival stores. In the space of one evening Jack is able to undo months of progress and insure that Lisa will never survive off the conversion unit.
He has been tracking Ianto’s search for anyone who might be able to help and has used the Hub computer network to focus Ianto on a particular expert. Someone with the knowledge to make a few small, insignificant, but impressive improvements in her condition, but lacking the common sense, morals, and basic survival instincts to make any serious progress. Someone that Jack would not mind having killed off in the crossfire. Someone whose blood could be used to purchase Ianto’s soul.
**********
Jack worried that after Suzie’s meltdown the others might confess to their illicit activities, see the danger in their hands, and look to him for guidance. He is ambivalent about the possibility. Allowing Owen and Toshiko to harbor their secrets gives him power over them, but Ianto’s situation feels a little different. The longer he goes on pretending not to notice the power spikes or Ianto’s disappearing act the more inept he looks. And while appearing to be oblivious makes it easy for everyone to underestimate him, there was also a point where it strains incredulity and just makes him look stupid.
As much as Jack hates to do it, he needs to at least make a show of concern by reiterating that alien tech should never be removed from the Hub without express permission. Toshiko and Owen at least play at contrition, turning in the items that they have taken home. Ianto doesn’t even manage that. But, since the items stored in the basement haven’t technically been taken out of the base, none of them appear to feel any compunction about maintaining those items. And, b the time the alien sex gas is captured in a portable cell, it is apparent that Owen hasn’t taken any part of the message to heart. And then Gwen, sweet innocent Gwen who he had trusted to not take up a pet project, decides that homework is required and takes an artifact home within her first two weeks. Really, for someone who is meant to low maintenance she is turning into a lot of work.
**********
“You've been hiding in my basement. That's okay. Draining my power, I can live with that ... but now you're starting to hurt my friends. This is gonna stop!”
Jack isn’t sure how, exactly, she got out of the basement. He has clearly miscalculated somewhere, whether in Ianto’s ingenuity or the sophistication of the upgrades, but now is not the time to worry about that. This is still containable and, handled correctly, will remind each member of his team just how much they owe Jack. Toshiko will be reminded of his capacity for love, forgiveness, and second chances. Owen will remember the pain of losing a loved one and all that Jack has done to help him heal. And Gwen will see the dangers of this job and Jack’s dedication to saving each of them.
“You brought this down on us. You hid her. You hid yourself from us. Now it's time for you to stand as part of the team.” Now is the time for Jack to spring the trap he has carefully laid, draw Ianto into his web. Cautiously.
“I’m giving you ten minutes, then we’re coming in.”
As soon as the door slides closed behind Ianto and Jack has silenced Toshiko’s objection, Jack abandons the last traces of his façade of calm, turning around and slamming backwards into the wall. As he slides down the wall he rests his head in his hands and gives into the tremors that have been threatening since the initial discovery that Lisa had somehow survived being taken off the conversion unit. Part of his brain registers that the other three members of his team are watching him. That the sight of their usually unflappable leader on the verge of hysterics will do nothing to reassure them, but overplaying the situation will work in his favor later.
All he wants to do now is sit and cry. But he cannot. He has to be the leader, he has to make the tough decisions. He knows that, ultimately, he has to contain the threat. He will have to kill the monster and break Ianto’s heart. He knows that the young man will not be able to and that, in the end, it will be easier when he does it instead. The ten minutes he allows Ianto are more of a time to say goodbye than a true deadline for Ianto to save his own life. He knows that he will have to be the one to tear Ianto down. He hopes he will be the one to build him back up.
As the ten minutes come to end, Jack regains his composure. He pushes down the fear and pain as he pushes himself up off the floor. And it is with a steady hand that he draws his weapon and leads the others back into battle.
Ianto had tried. He had held the gun to her forehead, but, in the end, he could not bring himself to actually kill her. He chooses instead to die with her and that hurts Jack all over again. Surely he was preferable to death. But Ianto had tried, and that has to count for something. If he had done it, if he had been capable of killing someone he loved that much, then he would be someone who could never be trusted. A sociopath. Which could be useful, but not nearly as easy to manipulate.
In the end Jack has to admit that it is better that Ianto had not been able to kill what little was left of the woman he loved. Watching his coworkers kill his girlfriend is bad enough, but if he had done it himself…well, there is no good outcome there. Ianto might succumb to the guilt and grief and kill himself, or retreat further into the shell he has built to separate himself from others, which amounted to the same thing. Either way, Jack did not bring him back so that Ianto could kill himself. No way was Ianto dying by his own hand—not now, not ever. He owes Jack his life.
Part 2
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