Title: Anto & Yack
Author: cameragirl
Pairings: Jack/Ianto
Rating: PG
Summary: An alien gas leaves Owen a toddler to test out Ianto and Jack's parenting skills.

***

A tense Ianto was waiting inside the SUV. Twenty minutes had passed since the remaining four members of the team had gone to investigate inside the "abandoned" warehouse. Supposedly it was just a normal Weevil call, but those usually took an average twelve minutes and thirty seconds.

Now they were passing twenty-one minutes and forty seconds. It was unnatural. At forty minutes without any word from the team, Ianto was supposed to leave and contact the other Torchwood offices.

Five more minutes passed and Ianto let himself lean against the headrest with his eyes shut. He would do no good just worrying.

Two minutes later, Ianto opened one eye and saw only Jack heading back toward the SUV. He quickly opened the door and stepped out.

"Take this." Jack pushed a bundle into a startled Ianto's arms. "Everything good out here?" Jack looked around.

"Yes sir, erm..." Ianto glanced down at a brown haired child that seemed to be wrapped in Owen's jacket.

"Watch over him. Give us fifteen more minutes to clean up inside." Jack kept watching all around until his eyes landed on Ianto. "Thanks!" He grinned and surprised Ianto by giving him a quick kiss. "We'll be out soon enough."

Jack gave a hopeful grin that made Ianto groan. Something had gone wrong. Jack called over his shoulder "Did you figure out that it's not just Owen's jacket?"

Ianto glanced up but Jack was gone. He looked down and saw a very frightened little boy wrapped in, not only Owen's jacket, but clothes in sizes too big. The clothes were Owen's as well.

"Oh dear." Ianto's eyes widened and he nearly dropped the bundle in surprise. They just stared at each other until Ianto spoke first.

"Are you ok?" He asked gently. They boy did a double-take at actually being spoken to.

It took a few minutes before he whispered. "Please, no hurt me sir." Ianto frowned immediately. The boy, who he was assuming to be Owen, couldn't have been more than four or five years of age. His grammar didn't seem too good and he seemed frightened of everything around them.

Ianto put on a soothing smile. "It's ok. No one's going to hurt you." He lifted the little boy so his head rested on Ianto's shoulder. It only lasted a minute before Owen tried to curl up. He didn't seem to want any part of himself vulnerable.

"Ok, ok." He wrapped the jacket tighter around him. He moved and sat in the back of the SUV to give them more room. "Are you hurt anywhere?" Owen slowly shook his head. "Are you hungry?" Ianto asked carefully, pretty sure they only had crackers and water in the SUV. Owen's eyes widened.

"What? What is it?" Ianto quickly looked behind him, but nothing was there. "...You don't eat much do you?" Ianto asked quietly.

He had always wondered why there was no record of Owen's past before he was adopted at age thirteen. Owen had obviously wanted to forget his childhood. A brief pang tugged at Ianto's heart.

"It's ok. You're allowed to eat. You won't get in trouble. I will not hurt you." Ianto talked slowly and annunciated all his words. A few more seconds passed before Owen nodded, showing that he understood. "Ok, good." Ianto smiled. He took a peanut butter cracker out of the crinkly plastic and handed it to Owen.

"Thank you." Owen whispered.

"I'm Ianto. Is your name Owen?" Ianto asked, trying to be as calm and casual as possible. Owen nodded. Ianto let out a deep sigh.

"Yantoh. Yaantoo." Owen whispered, trying to sound out the name. "Anto." Owen looked up for approval. Ianto smiled down and nodded. "Close enough." "Anto." Owen said again.

"That's right. And you're Owen." Ianto said absentmindedly while cleaning the crumbs off of the SUV's cushions.

"Do I have to go home?" Owen whispered suddenly. His eyes were quickly filling with tears. Ianto moved to place Owen in his lap.

"No, you don't have to go home." Ianto bundled him up like before. "You can stay here."

"No home? Nice warm here. With Anto and crackers?" Owen asked things that weren't really questions.

"Of course, the nice SUV with the heater and all the crackers you could ever want. And when we get back, I'll find you some juice or milk." Ianto mused and was surprised when Owen looked up and smiled hesitantly.

The SUV doors opened quickly. Owen huddled himself between the jacket and Ianto, hoping not to be seen. Tosh and Gwen both slid into the SUV on opposite sides and did double takes when Ianto was sitting in the middle.

"Hmm. He didn't turn back yet? That's...interesting." Jack climbed into the driver's seat. "Looks like I'm driving home."

"Sorry." Ianto mumbled. He probably couldn't have driven home even if he was up front. Owen was clinging tightly to Ianto's suit jacket with his eyes closed. Ianto sat awkwardly in-between Tosh and Gwen, both of whom were trying to coax Owen out.

"You might not want to do that." Ianto said quietly and smiled apologetically. "He doesn't seem to like people. Best let him be until we get back." He said it in such a serious tone that Gwen sat back. Tosh smiled at Ianto and patted him on the shoulder.

Ianto sighed and started to rub Owen's back to calm the toddler. Owen leaned into Ianto's chest and began to fall asleep.

"What happened?" Ianto asked, breaking the silence after a moment or two.

"Not just a Weevil. Something had eaten the Weevil. There was a gas in the medical bay, we weren't prepared. Owen was in the area before we got him out. Then he was turned into a..." Jack paused "Three or four year old?"

"Can't tell." Ianto shrugged.

"The alien gas in question came from a misled Bridgawoodite who thought he was invading another planet. We sorted it out; he apologized and said the gas will eventually wear off." Jack parked the SUV and glanced back. "Anywhere from a few hours to a few days."

Ianto slid out the SUV, still carrying a sleeping Owen. Gwen went off in one direction to the shops and Tosh helped Jack carry the Weevil.

"Looks like we have a kid for a bit then." Jack grinned. "Love kids. Could be practice if you ever get me pregnant." He teased. Ianto raised an eyebrow; he could never tell if Jack was joking.

"Erm, can I speak to you?" Ianto whispered once they were inside so Tosh couldn't hear. Jack sighed and nodded, already knowing what Ianto was going to ask. They walked into his office and Jack motioned to the chair. Ianto sat down, unsure where to begin. Jack decided to start.

"Owen was abused, badly, very badly as a child. Up until he was thirteen, that's when he was adopted. It was his mother and his father abusing him, but mostly his mother. And his father left when he was seven, but was hardly home as it was." Ianto stayed silent and still, only moving to readjust Owen as Jack continued. "He's going to be very afraid of Tosh and Gwen, he doesn't trust girls. Not that he really trusts guys, but more so than girls...Owen asked to be retconned when he first came to Torchwood. I only allowed him enough to make it less painful. He remembers it as a haze of events. Think this is probably a trigger though." Jack gestured toward Owen.

He was slowly waking up, and as a result, he was clinging tighter onto Ianto. "Looks like you're his new best friend." Jack smiled at Ianto.

"How ironic." Ianto muttered.

"Very ironic. But remember, this isn't Owen. It's an abused child that's taken a liking to you." Jack pointed out.

"Yes, I know." Ianto smiled down at Owen and handed him another cracker.

"Gwen went out to get him an outfit and she also went to Tesco." Jack told him. "And you have a guestroom right next to the master? If he's still little, that'll be good for tonight. I haven't spent the night at your place in forever." Jack smirked, remembering last time.

"Does that mean we don't know how long he's going to be like that?" Gwen asked with her mouth open. "What about his friends and family?" She asked insistently.

"No friends on the side, family is taken care of by Tosh, you know that." Jack waved away her questions.

"How is he?" Gwen asked curiously. Owen had dropped his cracker immediately tried to burrow himself further into Ianto's coat when he had seen Gwen.

"Frightened." Jack stated the obvious. "Thanks for making the food and clothes run. We'll take it from here." Gwen looked doubtful but Jack firmly said "Go home to Rhys, Gwen." Gwen frowned but did as he asked, collected her coat and left.

"So, here we have a pair of mini sweatpants and a mini hoodie." Jack held up the clothes and Ianto nudged Owen to watch. Jack moved toward Owen and tried to lift him from the jacket and Ianto.

That wasn't about to happen. Owen pushed back toward Ianto and tried to squirm out of Jack's grasp. Jack froze and stepped back to sit on the floor. "Ok, that approach didn't work. You try."

Ianto turned Owen around to face him. He held up the clothes. "Can we change you out of the big clothes?" Ianto asked. Owen hesitated and looked over at Jack.

"Anto." Owen insisted and Jack tried to stifle a laugh.

"I take it that's you?" Ianto ignored him and continued talking to Owen.

"This is Jack." Ianto pointed.

"Ack. Juh-ack. Yack." Owen kept trying.

"That's right, Yack." Ianto grinned.

Owen leaned up toward Ianto's ear and whispered "Nice?"

Ianto smiled and looked at Jack. "Yes, very nice." Ianto sat Owen on the and slowly began to undress him. He made sure Owen watched his every move. The little boy's eyes followed every move Ianto's hands made.

"Hands up." Ianto instructed once all his clothes were off. Owen nervously put his hands above his head and Ianto slipped the hoodie over his head. Once Owen was completely dressed he looked up.

"Feels nice. Warm."

"He likes nice and warm." Jack stated.

"Yea, he keeps saying them a lot." Ianto noticed. A beep sounded and Jack's eyes glanced up towards the computer monitor.

"Tosh just waved. She's left for the night." He told Ianto. "Should we start heading back to your place?"

"Leaving?" Owen's eyes started to fill with tears.

"No, no. We're not leaving you." Ianto picked Owen up. "You're coming home with us. Ok?" Owen sniffled and nodded. He put his arms around Ianto's neck and rested his head on Ianto's shoulder. "Good improvement." Ianto told Jack.

"Yea, he's taken quite a liking to you." Jack proudly grinned and put on his coat. He gave Ianto a kiss, fully aware that Owen was watching them. They both looked at him but he didn't comment on the kiss, just stared at the two of them.

"That's just weird." Jack muttered.

"Jack!" Ianto cuffed him upside the head. Jack was still grumbling about his head hurting when they walked into Ianto's flat.

"Does he need more food?" Jack asked.

"Eight crackers and one juice box. He's finally gone to sleep and I don't want to disturb him." Ianto laid him down in the twin guest bed and left the door open. Leaning against the doorway, he watched Owen sleep until he felt Jack come up behind him. Jack kissed the top of Ianto's head.

"He'll appreciate it. Owen, I mean. And you'll make a great parent someday." Jack said quietly. Ianto turned to face Jack and wrapped his arms around the captain's neck. He leaned into Jack and kissed him.

Jack began kissing him back until he decided they needed to be somewhere comfortable. Jack yanked on Ianto's tie and led him to the master bedroom. Ianto refused to let Jack do anything but kiss him.

"Not with the wee tot a bedroom over."

Jack let out an exasperated sigh and rolled away onto his back.

"Sorry, but I don't want to wake him or-" Jack muffled whatever words Ianto might have said next with a kiss. "Thanks." Ianto smiled when Jack finally pulled away.

"For the kiss or for the understanding?" Jack teased. "Both." Ianto grinned and fell asleep in Jack's arms.

...

Little Owen woke up in a dark room. He was still in his clothes, but couldn't see Ianto anywhere. Or that other man.

"Anto?" He whispered to the room. When there was no answer, he decided to cautiously make his was off the bed and toward the open door. He tottered down the hall and into the master bedroom.

"Ianto!" He quietly triumphed. Owen climbed up onto the bed and squeezed between Jack and Ianto.

Jack stirred and opened his eyes to find Owen sleeping peacefully under Ianto's arm. "Hey Ianto, we've got company."

"Mmm?" Ianto mumbled but didn't say anything else. Jack rolled his eyes and tried again.

"Ianto... we've got some company...Ianto." Jack reached over and played with the hair behind Ianto's ear.

"Mmm." Ianto lifted the hand that was on Owen and tried to swat Jack's hand away. Jack caught Ianto's hand as it dropped down and Ianto's eyes opened. "What is it Jack...?" He asked groggily.

"Owen's here, don't roll over onto him."

"Owen? Oh..." Ianto saw the little sleeping boy huddled between Jack and himself. "When did he get here? How did he get here?"

"Well, it's a shot in the dark, but I'm guessing he came through the door. Not sure how long he's been in here though."

"Mmm smart ass." Ianto mumbled and went back to sleep. The next time Jack woke up there was a full grown Owen next to him in bed. Owen appeared to be fine; he was under Ianto's arm. Jack usually wasn't the jealous type, but it was too weird seeing Owen and Ianto together.

However, their faces when either would awake would be brilliant. Jack laughed at the thought and went to find breakfast for himself.

After a half hour, he began to hear movement in the room. Jack stood in the doorway just in time to see Owen start waking up. His eyes opened, slowly at first, but then sprung open wide when he saw he was under Ianto's arm.

Owen sat up and backed himself against the headboard. He was breathing quickly and shot Jack a confused look. "Slow down your breathing Owen. Everything's fine. Let me explain." Jack moved into the room toward the bed. "What's the last thing you remember?"

"I-I-I remember the warehouse and gas and suh-someone screaming." Owen looked between Jack and the sleeping Ianto.

"Calm down Owen. Take deep breaths. For the past day you've been stuck as a younger version of yourself. That's what the gas was that you remember. The person screaming was you. You were changed into a toddler." Jack explained slowly.

"But..." Owen looked at Ianto again. "Why was I in that bed with him?" Owen asked nervously.

"You were turned into your toddler self. You were scared of everything and Ianto was the only person you listened to and felt comfortable around." Jack said quietly.

"Oh." Owen whispered. He suddenly realized what Jack was saying. Everything was confused and foggy but he remembered the basics of his childhood, how he would have acted around strangers. "Was Ianto ok with that?" Owen asked suddenly.

Jack chuckled and the tension in the room seemed to disperse. "It caught him off guard at first, but he warmed up to it. I only told him what he needed to know." Jack added and proceeded to describe all the interaction between Ianto and little Owen. He didn't want to give too much away because the whole ordeal hadn't triggered the retcon effect.

"Ok..." Owen said after Jack finished, a little confused.

"Go back to sleep for a bit, then take the day off. It's Saturday and Tosh and Gwen are on call." Jack told him. Owen nodded, just thinking it was better to obey Jack. He got under the covers, setting a nice distance between Ianto and himself.

Another half hour later, Jack left the couch and the tv to walk back into the room. This time it was Ianto who had woken up. He raised an eyebrow at Jack before looking at Owen again. He shot Jack a questioning look, not speaking, not wanting to wake Owen up. Jack nodded and Ianto smiled and got out of bed.

"Everything's fine. I explained what had happened. He didn't remember anything." Ianto just nodded, kissed Jack good morning and went to get dressed.

It was a little awkward later in the morning when Owen woke up. He pulled on a pair of pants and his jacket. No one was speaking, but right before Owen was about to leave he stopped in front of the door. He turned around and gave Ianto a quick hug. Embarrassed, he mumbled a thanks and goodbye before quickly leaving.

There was a moments silence until-

"You're not going to sleep with him, right?" Jack grinned at the wide-eyed Ianto. He frowned at Jack and began to walk away but not before he was grabbed aroud the waist.

"I just-asked a-simple-question." Jack kissed Ianto between words. "Come on." He took Ianto by the tie and pulled him into the bedroom. "I need to make up for what I missed last night."

***