Title: Home Is Where the Heart Is
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Ianto Jones/Tenth Doctor
Fandom: Torchwood/Doctor Who
Rating: PG-13
Table: 25fluffyfics
Prompt: 14, Home
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own Ianto Jones or the Tenth Doctor. Please do not sue.

***

Ianto looked around the bedroom that he shared with the Doctor in the Tardis, smiling slightly as he surveyed the changes he'd made. He hoped that his lover liked them, but the Time Lord had told him to change the room in any way he wanted to.

After all, the Tardis was his home now, too, Ianto told himself, leaning over to smooth a rumpled bit of the blanket on their bed. He wanted the ship to be comfortable for both of them -- and really, he hadn't changed things that much.

Ianto straightened up as he heard the Doctor come into their bedroom, looking over his shoulder to smile at his lover. "I hope you don't mind the changes," he said softly, a slight frown furrowing his brow as he watched the Time Lord survey the room.

All he had changed was the placement of some of the furniture in the room -- hopefully, he'd given them a bit more space and made their sleeping quarters look roomier and more inviting. At least, that was the impression he'd tried to give.

The two comfortable chairs were in different places, closer to each other than they had been. The large chest of drawers and wardrobe had been moved from the center of one wall to the corner, and the bed had been moved further along another wall so it was more centered.

The Doctor glanced around the room, seeming to take everything in with one quick look. Smiling, he moved to where Ianto was standing by the bed and wrapped his arms around his lover's waist, nuzzling his cheek against Ianto's.

"I like what you've done," he said softly, his soft lips brushing against the young man's skin. "It feels as though you've put a bit of your own personal stamp on this room. And that's how it should be, love. This room should be comfortable for both of us."

"It's not that I didn't like it the way it was before," Ianto told him, still a little anxious. "I did. But this feels a bit roomier, doesn't it?" He hoped that the Doctor agreed with him; he wanted the Time Lord to be comfortable in his own bedroom.

"Yes, it does," the Doctor said softly, as Ianto turned in his embrace and slid his arms around the other man's slim waist. "And more importantly, it feels like there's a bit of you here now. I'm surprised we didn't get around to changing things earlier."

"There aren't a lot of things about the Tardis I want to change," Ianto murmured, feeling somewhat embarrassed about the fact that the Time Lord heartily approved of what he'd done. "I already feel as though this is my home."

"The Tardis is your home, Ianto," the Doctor said, pulling back slightly, a tiny frown marring his brow. "I want you to feel that you can do anything here. I feel bad about you giving up your flat in Cardiff, so I want you to feel completely at home where you are."

"I gave up that flat because it would have been ridiculous for me to keep paying rent on a place that I no longer live in on a permanent basis," Ianto told him, shaking his head. "And I don't earn a wage now, so it would be hard to keep doing that."

"That flat was your home, love." The Doctor sighed, looking down. "I wish you hadn't had to give it up. You lived there for quite a while -- you felt comfortable there. It was your space. Everyone need to have a place like that. A refuge."

"I still have that place," Ianto said softly, placing a hand under the Doctor's chin and tilting his face upwards to look into his eyes. "It's here, Doctor. The Tardis is more of a refuge for me -- and more of a home -- than any other place I've ever been."

"Do you miss having a home on Earth, Ianto?" the Doctor asked, his dark eyes focused on Ianto's face. "If you do, maybe we can find a flat there that we can stay in whenever we're on Earth. I want you to feel that you have something there, if you want it."

Ianto shook his head, smiling as he spoke. "No, Doctor, I don't. My home is with you, no matter where we are. And the Tardis is more of a home to me than any other place has ever been. It wasn't me that made my flat in Cardiff a home, you know."

"Why do you think that?" The Doctor looked puzzled, his eyes widening. "You spent a lot of time fixing that flat up the way you wanted it, and making it look lovely. I always felt at home every time I walked through the front door."

"It wasn't a home until you became a part of it, love," Ianto said softly, raising a hand to cup the Doctor's cheek. "I never felt that it was a place I loved. I lived there, yes, I ate and slept there, but it never felt like a home until I was with you."

"It felt like a home to me," the Doctor protested. "From the first moment I walked into that flat, I could feel your presence in it. And that made me feel more comfortable than I have anywhere else on Earth, knowing that it was your home."

Ianto had to swallow back the lump in his throat before he could speak; he hadn't known that the Doctor had felt that way about his Cardiff flat. "It never felt like a home until you were there. It was just a place to me, Doctor. You brought love into that place."

"No one had been there before who you loved?" the Doctor asked, blinking in surprise. "Not even Jack?" He'd pictured Jack in Ianto's flat, making himself at home there, being a part of Ianto's life in every way. He'd thought they were connected through more than just Torchwood.

But Ianto was shaking his head, sighing softly. "No, Jack was never a part of that place. Yes, he spent some time there, but it never felt as though he really belonged in that part of my life. What I had with him was very much a product of our work environment."

"I know it sounds selfish -- but it makes me happy to know that Jack never shared your home in the same way that I do," the Doctor told him, his dark gaze still fixed on Ianto's face. "There have been times when I've wondered if you missed being with him."

Ianto shook his head, laughter bubbling up within him. "No, I've never missed being with Jack. Not since the day I met you. You've spoiled me for all other men, Doctor." He added, his voice very soft and gentle, "And my home is with you. In the Tardis, on Earth, or wherever you happen to be."

"You make the Tardis even more of a home for me than she already was," the Time Lord whispered, swallowing audibly. "I've always considered her my home -- but she's even more so now that I have you to share my home with."

"I'm happy to share your home with you, love," Ianto murmured, raising a hand to stroke the Doctor's hair back from his face. "And I hope that I'll be doing that for a long time to come. I can't imagine ever wanting to leave."

"I hope you never will," the Doctor told him, his voice a little choked. "No matter what happens, Ianto, I'll always want you here -- and I'll always feel that my home is with you, whether on the Tardis, or any other place in the galaxy that we might happen to be."

Ianto couldn't have agreed more with those words; but rather than saying so, he simply pulled the other man close and pressed a kiss to his parted lips. His home was where his heart was -- and that heart was with the man in his arms.

***