Title: Safety in Numbers
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Ianto Jones/Tenth Doctor
Fandom: Torchwood/Doctor Who
Rating: PG-13
Table: Connect 3, Graph 3, in 5_prompts
Prompt: 9, Safe and sound
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 paced the control room of the Tardis, looking up expectantly each time he heard a sound. He hated to think of the Doctor out there by himself on a planet that they didn't know much about, but the Time Lord had insisted on going out alone.

He'd been here before, as he'd explained to Ianto, and he'd discovered that the denizens of this planet were uneasy when more than one new person at a time was presented to them. If they both went out of the ship, they might be looked at as being hostile.

He would let them know that Ianto was here, of course. And he would carefully explain to these people that they had no intention of causing any trouble. There might be safety in numbers, but in this case, it was safer to be sure that numbers were welcomed first.

Ianto had reluctantly agreed, though he'd felt that he was shirking some of his duties as a companion by saying behind. He was supposed to keep the Doctor safe, to watch his back -- and he couldn't do that if he was here while the Doctor was roaming around alone.

But he had to defer to what the Time Lord wanted, he told himself with a heavy sigh, slumping against the console. He'd never been to this planet before; he didn't know how the people here would react, and the Doctor obviously did.

What the Time Lord had neglected to take into account when he'd said that the people would be informed of their intention not to cause any trouble was that trouble seemed to follow them around as if it was stalking them across the universe.

Sometimes he felt that he was very inadequate in his capacity as the Doctor's companion, Ianto thought dejectedly, looking around the control room. He wasn't able to keep trouble away from the Time Lord, even though he was good at fighting his way through it.

That wasn't what he was supposed to do. He was supposed to sense that trouble before it could near his lover; he was supposed to keep it at bay, make sure that it never reached them or escalated to the point where they had to fight.

The Doctor seemed more than happy with his abilities, but Ianto was fairly sure that the Time Lord saw him in a way that he couldn't possibly view himself. The Doctor loved him, in spite of his faults, and he would accept those faults and even embrace them.

It was harder for Ianto to embrace his own faults, when he could see them so clearly and enumerate all of them minutely. Maybe, as the Doctor said, he shouldn't be so hard on himself, but it was hard for him not to do that.

He'd spent his life finding fault with himself. There had been a score of failures, from not making both of his parents happy, to failing in relationships. Well, until he'd met the Doctor, at any rate. This was one relationship that he knew would last.

This was too hard to do, Ianto told himself, clenching his hands into fists and staring at the door. He was going to go absolutely barmy if he didn't leave the ship and look for the Doctor, make sure that his lover was safe and sound.

As though his words had called the Time Lord back into the Tardis, the door suddenly opened, almost making Ianto jump back in surprise. The Doctor entered the ship, beaming at Ianto as he bounded up the three short steps into the control room.

"Ianto! I've spoken to the leader of the people here, and they've agreed for us both to leave the ship and spend some time here. Some of the people remember me from the last time I was here -- and from times before that, even in a different body."

The Doctor's words tumbled out over each other, as though he couldn't speak quickly enough. He was almost jumping from foot to foot in his eagerness to be back on the planet; Ianto couldn't hold back a smile, and a profound sense of relief.

He really shouldn't worry about his lover staying safe as much as he did. After all, the Doctor had been roaming the galaxy for centuries; he didn't need a mere human to keep him safe. Ianto was probably exaggerating his place in the Doctor's life, in that capacity at least.

But he definitely wasn't exaggerating his place as the Time Lord's lover. He knew that he owned this man's hearts -- and the Doctor had his, as well. That was one thing that he got right all the time, one place that he was absolutely secure in.

He kept the Doctor safe in all the ways he could -- but he couldn't wrap this man in cotton wool to be sure that he would stay safe. Still, the Time Lord always had a safe place in Ianto's heart -- and there he would stay, safe and sound in a love he could always be sure of.

He crooked his arm with a smile, waiting until the Doctor slipped his own through it and then looking towards the door of the ship. "Shall we go, then?" the young man said, turning his head to look at his lover. "I'm anxious to see this planet for myself."

"And I'm sure they're anxious to meet you, too," the Doctor said happily, leading his boyfriend to the door of the ship and turning to press a kiss to his cheek before he flung the door open. "Onward to a new experience, then! Allons-y!"

***