Skeletons in the Closet
By: Tenshi-Chan

Disclaimer: I don't own these gorgeous guys, but I do own a composition notebook with their picture on it.

Note: Check out my Doctor Who crossover called "Ianto Lives" which is a CoE fix-it! You can find it on my page.

Part 1

"Ianto! Would work your magic and bring me a cup of that ambrosia fools call coffee please? I'll be in my office."

Ianto Jones looked up and nodded. When his boss, Jack Harkness, turned to enter said office, he headed for the coffee machine. He worked quickly, wanting to get down to the lowest level of the archives as soon as he could. He needed to check on Lisa before he felt comfortable with doing his usual tasks for the day.

Once the coffee was done, he headed for the office. He knocked twice and entered when he was bade and closed the door behind him. He placed the steaming cup on the desk next to the large flowery coral. "Will there be anything else, Sir?"

Jack glanced up at him from the paperwork he was doing. "Sit a moment, Ianto." When Ianto sat down, Jack put down his pen and steepled his fingers. After looking at him a moment, Jack sighed. "What am I going to do with you?"

Ianto blinked in confusion. "Sir?"

"The way I see it, I have three options. None of which appeal to me since I kind of like you. I can lock you in a cell next to Janet for the rest of your life, kill you, or retcon you and send you to a mental hospital since the amount of retcon I'll need will turn you into a blubbering vegetable." Jack tapped his index fingers together. "OR you can talk to me and give me a reason to not do any of those things."

Ianto swallowed and took in a deep breath. "Sir? I don't..."

Jack cut him off. "I've disposed of the Cyber unit in the basement."

Ianto felt the world drop out from under him at that blunt statement and then his vision narrowed to a pinprick and then vanished completely.

Awareness returned slowly to Ianto. He was lying on a comfortable surface. His shoes, jacket and tie were gone and his shirt was slightly unbuttoned. Otherwise, he was fully dressed. He became slowly aware of a cool weight on his head as he blinked his eyes open to look around a dark room. He wasn't in the cells, so where was he? He tried to sit up when a hand stopped him.

"Stay down a moment. Damn, Ianto, when was the last time you've eaten?"

Ianto glared at the man. Jack Harkness ... who he had just learned killed the only good thing in his life. "Why should you care?"

The man had the nerve to offer a kind smile. "I care, Ianto, whether you believe it or not. I care enough to keep you from making a monumental mistake, and trying to fix that cyber unit in the basement would have been such a mistake. You're lucky it was me who found it and not Owen, Tosh or Suzie. Lord knows how any of them would have reacted. One of the things that saved your neck was the fact that the thing in the basement looked and probably acted like Lisa Hallett."

Ianto felt his spirit return. "It WAS Lisa! You killed her!"

The older man shook his head sadly. "Ianto ... the Cybermen killed her. I just destroyed the shell that looked like her."

Ianto shoved his boss away and sat up, ignoring the dizzy spell that hit him. "You don't understand! The process was never completed! I could have found a way to cure her!" His breath hitched. "I owed her that much."

Jack's eyes softened and shook his head again. "Oh Ianto ..." He put his hand on Ianto's shoulder. "Look at me." When Ianto complied, Jack made sure to meet his gaze. "There is no cure. Once a person is even one percent converted, there's no going back. What made you think that she would be an exception?" He sighed. "She must have been an amazing person to gain such devotion from you."

Ianto clenched his teeth together and looked away. "So ... what now?"

Jack let his hand drop and ran it through his hair. "Protocol dictates that you should, at the very least, be put on suspension. Damned if I want to do that, though. You've already been through so much. The fact that you kept that thing functional for so long tells me you were actually at the battle of Canary Warf. Otherwise, it would have already shut down on its own." He regarded Ianto a moment, and then nodded. "Considering everything, though, I should send you home for at least today." Then the man looked like he had eaten something sour and spoke again. "Owen is going with you, though. You're too thin and pale and I honestly don't trust you not to do something stupid."

Ianto let his jaw drop. Was he that transparant? "You mean ...?"

Jack nodded. "You're on suicide watch for the time being. I'd go with you, but I highly doubt that you want to have any sort of conversation with me, so it has to be Owen. At least until this afternoon." He motioned to the ladder. "Up you go."

Ianto grudgingly climbed the ladder with Jack not too far behind. He emerged to find himself in Jack's office. He might have been able to make a run for it, but really didn't see the point. He sat down in the chair he had occupied earlier and ignored what was happening around him. While Lisa had been in the basement, he'd had some hope. Now that the hope was gone, he didn't see the point of anything anymore. He was barely aware as Jack called Owen into the office and spoke with him. He only blinked when Owen's slim hand waved in front of his eyes.

"You're right, Jack. The coffee boy looks like a leaf would be too heavy for him to lift." The medic promptly stuck a sterilized thermometer into Ianto's mouth.

"Just remember what I told you."

Ianto wondered if Jack had told Owen everything, but found he couldn't really care. When Owen helped him from the chair, he heard Jack calling his name. He turned to the man.

"We'll talk again later." With that, Jack nodded and Ianto was guided out of the Hub.

Jack watched Owen lead the youngest member of his staff out of the Hub and dropped his head in his hands. How had he missed it? Had he been that blindsided by a pretty face?

He did feel for the kid. From what he'd heard, Canary Warf had been pure hell for everyone that had been there. Only a handful of people had come out of that battle alive. Fewer still had kept it together enough to function in society. It hadn't been that long ago, and Jack already had gotten word that a few of the survivors had committed suicide. He was worried that the only thing that had kept the young Welshman going was the hope that his girlfriend could be cured.

"I have to fix this." He murmured and touched the coral on his desk. "How am I going to fix this?" He had lived for almost two hundred years, but he still floundered when it came to dealing with another person's problems. He seriously hoped that his error wouldn't cost Ianto his life. The young man had so much promise as a valuable member of his team.

He sighed and shrugged. He still had the hub to run. Later on he'd go to Ianto's place and check up on the Welshman as well as relieve Owen. The doctor had promised to watch Ianto carefully. Owen never admitted it, but he was rather fond of the boy himself. He wanted Ianto to pull through this as much as Jack did.

The day dragged on. The only thing that comforted Jack was the regular call-ins from Owen. He'd checked Ianto out and found he was somewhat malnourished, but healthy. At about lunch time, Jack stood up. He didn't want to wait any more. He grabbed his jacket and headed for the lift. "Suzie, you're in charge. Call me if something comes up. Tosh, run a scan of the Hub. I want to make sure we have everything we should and don't have anything we shouldn't." He wasn't taking any more chances. It disturbed him a little that Ianto had managed to smuggle in the Cyber unit in the first place. Not to mention the hardware that the thing had been hooked up to. It spoke volumes of how much of Ianto's activities he had overlooked. It said even more about just how resourceful Ianto could be. He could have sworn that he saw a few paper clips, staples and hair pins in the sophisticated machinery. That resourcefulness was the main reason why Jack hadn't killed or retconned him.

He stood on the block until it was level with the plass and then merged with the pedestrians. He walked with pruposeful strides to where the SUV was and got into the vehicle. Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, he started the car and drove to Ianto's.