Title: Loyal to the end
By: ebonyjet
Pairing: mild Jack/Ianto
Rating: PG-13
Author's Notes: I love Ianto and i like to think this is how he would react to Jack's death.
Summary: This is a missing scene that fits in the episod "End of Days", Its the bit where the rest of the team find out Jack is "dead".

***

Gwen opened the back door of the Hub, the one that led to the SUV's garage. She stepped forwards, clenched her fists and screamed as loud as she could, breaking off into loud sobs, before she screamed for a second time. This time, it wasn't just noise, it was a word.

"HELP!"

Owen, Tosh and Ianto all came running from their stations to find and respond to Gwen Cooper's screams.

"Please help," she called again. She was on her knees, sobbing uncontrollably into her open hands when they found her. Owen bent down next to his distraught lover and put his arms around her.

"Alright love, it's Ok," he soothed.

Toshiko also crouched down next to the crying woman in an unsuccessful attempt to calm her.

"Gwen, what's happened?" she asked, placing a tentative hand on her shoulder.

"Jack!" Gwen said, in between loud sobs. "He's... he's in the SUV... he's dead!"

Owen squeezed her even tighter and Toshiko's jaw dropped as tears formed in her dark eyes.

Ianto turned and opened the door to the garage. Without so much as changing his facial expression, he walked through the door. Now he was alone in the brightly lit, concrete room, where the Torchwood Team kept the Black SUV, Ianto could see Jack's muscular body slumped against the passenger window, his face pale and lifeless. His usually pink lips had taken on a bluish tinge and his eyes were shut. He looked frail, as if as soon as he was touched, his skin would turn to dust and he would simply blow away. But Ianto didn't want to believe what was right in front of him.

"Sir?" Ianto banged the palm of his hand on the glass window next to the American's face. "Jack!"

Ianto banged on the window again, but Jack didn't move. He slowly reached for the door handle, puling it up and letting the door glide gently open. Thanks to his seat belt, Jack's limp body fell only halfway out of the door, but was stopped from falling to the floor.

"Captain?" Ianto asked, pulling Jack's body up into a sitting position and undoing the seat belt.

The Welshman's heart sank so fast, he didn't even have to think. He bit his bottom lip, but quickly regained his composure. Putting back on his usual plain expression, he bend his head so he could get the other main into a fireman's lift, to take him to the others.

The door was open so Ianto could just walk through it, holding Jack over his shoulders with an arm around Jack's arm and the other around his boss's limp legs.

"Oh my god!" Toshiko gasped as she saw Ianto enter, carrying Jack. "Is he..."

Ianto nodded, and continued to walk, without speaking or looking to the others.

Gwen was still crying into Owen's brown-leather coated shoulder, but Owen saw Ianto and Jack. He saw the pale blue that had taken over Jack's skin and he knew what it meant.

"Shit," he whispered, gazing in absolute horror. "It's my fault. I opened the rift. I let it out... I killed Jack."

Ianto turned and sent his angry, accusing stare in Owen's direction, letting him see how he was really feeling, before marching off, with Jack still over his shoulders.

Owen blinked away his tears, feeling Ianto's burning eyes on his face. He'd never seen or heard of Ianto getting angry or upset, but he could feel the full course of it now.

"I'm sorry," he muttered, clinging to Gwen so they could share support.

The body was laid out on the sliver post-mortem table in the centre of the round room. Ianto straightened Jack's coat and washed his pale face with warm water from the tap. He dabbed a cloth on the other man's forehead and over his closed eyes. This was the great Captain Jack Harkness, who could survive four bullets from Owen's gun... but he was dead.

When he had finished, Ianto walked slowly to the sink and threw the cloth as hard as he could against the opposite wall, making a wet thudding noise as the two collided.

"FUCK!" He shouted, leaning with both hand on the side of the sink.

"Ianto?"

A hand fell on his shoulder and Ianto Jones jumped and turned to see Toshiko stood next to him, with Owen and Gwen behind her. Immediately, Ianto's face changed back and his normal expression spread across his features.

"Who wants coffee?" he asked, looking at them all and smiling slightly. He had to be strong for the team, had to pretend nothing was wrong, everything was fine.

Toshiko frowned in confusion; Gwen shook her head, open-mouthed and Owen just looked astonished. What the hell was Ianto doing?

"I think we could all do with a coffee, don't you?" he repeated.

"Ianto, I think maybe you should sit down," Toshiko suggested, squeezing his arm.

"Yeah mate, just stop for a second. This is just too much. Ianto?" Owen stepped forwards, leaving Gwen to stand by herself.

"Ianto, their right," the Welsh female said, wrapping her arms around herself. "You should just..."

"So that's three coffees. I won't be long. Do you want any biscuits?" Ianto asked, walking briskly off to the Torchwood Kitchen. Ianto hummed "One Day I'll Fly Away" as he made coffee for the others, just like everything was fine. He set out four black mugs, one for Owen, one for Gwen, one for Tosh and one for Jack. When Ianto was finished, he found a silver tray and placed the four mugs on it, walking first to Jack's office, where he put the dray on the edge of the desk. He set Jack's mug on it before straightening some of the papers that lay strewn over the desk. He nodded to himself and took his tray from the room.

"Gwen, this one's for you. I made it extra strong."

"Ianto?"

"Don't worry, I didn't forget you Tosh. Here's yours," Ianto nodded towards one of the mugs on his tray. "And that one's Owen's."

"Ianto, sit the FUCK down!" Owen shouted at him. "Jack is dead and all you can do it make coffee and pretend there's fuck all wrong!"

"Owen, drink your coffee," Ianto hissed back at Owen.

"Ianto, just stop pretending," Toshiko said, taking him by the arm.

"Jack Harkness is not dead! Gwen, you believe me... right?"

Gwen moved her eyes to the floor and bit her bottom lip.

"Don't you give up on him Gwen Cooper! You, of all people, should know that he can't die!" Ianto smiled, trying to get rid of the burning feeling that was slowly building behind his ice blue eye, as hot tears formed there. "He has been shot through the head in front of you all! And in front of Gwen twice! That monster hasn't killed him!" Ianto stamped his foot. "Owen! Tosh! Gwen! None of you know him like I do. Jack doesn't die. It's not possible!"
Gwen hung her head ... "I wanna sit with him."

***