Title: Bred in the Bone (8/?)

Author: Emma

Characters: Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones, Andy Davidson, Toshiko Sato, others

Rating: Starts PG, but hey, it’s got Jack and Ianto in it!

Disclaimer: Oh, please. If I owned them, would I let some of those idiots write the scripts? And if I were making any money off them, would I be where they could find me?

Summary: Andy Davidson must embrace his inheritance in order to protect Jack and Ianto’s daughter Gwen

Author's Note: This is an AU where Gwen and Owen were killed by Gray. So if you want to know why Martha is married to Rhys and Jack and Ianto have a CP and two adopted daughters, you may want to read Evolution first

Author’s Note: The title is shamelessly stolen from Robertson Davies’s magnificent novel. It’s also an old saying: what’s bred in the bone will out in the flesh

Part One is here; Part Two is here; Part Three is here; Part Four is here; Part Five is here; Part Six is here; Interlude is here; Part Seven is here
 

            “Angie?” Ianto was leaning on the staff, trying to catch his breath. “What are you doing here?”

            “Waiting for you.”

            She wrapped her arms around his waist and hung on. He used his free hand to pull her tight and bury his face in her hair. Tosh and I exchanged a raised-eyebrow look.

            “I tried to find you, after Tad…”

            “I know. I don’t think you were supposed to.” She pulled away, patting his shoulders and then his cheeks. “Come on. We need to look at your ribs.”

            She kept one arm around his waist. Ianto seemed almost in shock. I think he had forgotten Tosh and I were there until they turned and he saw us staring at the two of them.

            “Ah… Tosh, Andy… this is my sister Angharad. Angie,” he waved the staff in our direction” this is Tosh… Toshiko Sato… and Andy Davidson.”

            “I know. Hello, Tosh, nice to meet you at last.” She smiled at me, looking remarkably like Ianto at his snarkiest, and curtsied. “Your Majesty.”

            I winced. The clever wench had just taken all the attention off herself and hung the bull’s eye right back around my neck.

            “It’s a family… thing,” I said to Tosh and Ianto, sounding lame even to myself. “It hasn’t been relevant in thousands of years. We can talk about it later, all right? Let’s get you both somewhere safe. Miss Jones, you know the way.”

            “Yes, Sire.” She giggled at my scowl. “If you are going to be formal, I’ll have to be formal.”

            “All right, Angie it is. Go, you cheeky brat!”

            She set down the path, holding on to Ianto’s hand. Tosh followed them, scurrying past me with her eyes down. I brought up the rear, thinking fast. I had been hoping I could get this thing under control without having to reveal more about myself than I had to. Foolishness. Mum had a saying, what’s bred in the bone will out in the flesh. Can’t hide who you are, because your own nature will betray you. Or your own history.

            I waited until we were inside Reality, and then tapped Tosh on the shoulder. She jumped, bringing up her katana as she moved away.

            “Tosh, it’s just me. Andy. We fight over what movie to watch and who gets the last slice of pizza. You’ve taught me how to use a computer without making an ass of myself. I… care about you very much. You know me.”

            “Do I?” She pulled out a cloth and started to clean her blade, keeping her eyes down. “Three days ago, I would have said so. “Now? I did a little research last night. Wales is full of stories of the Tylwyth Teg. But it’s more than that, isn’t it? I looked up Achren. I’ll bet my next paycheck that your family is tied to half of the great Welsh myths. And now… how old are you, Andy?”

            “Huh? What does that have to do with…?”

            “How old are you, Andy?”

            “One hundred and sixty six. I am the last born of my people.” I made a face. “The baby.”

            She gave me a tiny smile but didn’t stop the interrogation. “How long will you live?”

            “Tosh…”

            “How long, Andy?”

            “Barring accident or killing, around ten thousand Earth years.” I took the cloth out of her hand. “Does it matter? Look at Jack and Ianto. They’ll have only a few decades, but they don’t let that stop them.”

            “Is that what you want, Andy? A few decades?”

            “I want whatever you will give me.”

            She studied me for what felt like a hundred years. I waited, trying my damndest not to push. Then, slowly, she leaned in and pressed her lips to mine. I made sure both swords were out of the way before kissing back.

            Tosh kisses the same way she hacks super-encrypted computer systems: thoroughly and with superb artistry.

            We could have happily kept going but we were interrupted. “I’m sure I can speak for Jack when I say we’re overjoyed you two have finally stopped dancing around each other, but would you mind tabling the… ah… discussion,… for a bit? My side hurts, I’m hungry, and I’m still owed a few explanations.”

            I gave Ianto a dirty look. “The Jones family is going to be a pain in my arse for the duration, isn’t it?”

            “We can only devoutly hope.” The cheeky grin turned into a grimace and he pressed his palm against his ribs. “I don’t think it’s very far.”

            The trail wove through a belt of tall trees that served as a hedge. Beyond that, it skirted a wildflower meadow until it reached a small group of white-washed cottages clustered around a tiny green where a small slate roofed structure protected a pool filled with sparkling silver water. The cottages were surrounded by gardens where all kinds of flowers bloomed in blithe disrespect for season or hardiness zones.

            “It looks the same,” Ianto murmured, “but not. I remember the well, but the water was brackish then. And I don’t remember the meadow at all. And the gardens!”

            “When you were here last, you saw what Achren wanted you to see,” I said. “It’s what any tourist would see. A picturesque little hamlet worth an hour or so of picture taking, maybe a quick one at the local pub and then off you go again looking for better views. What you’re seeing now is what is real.”

            Angie led us across the green towards a large cottage set slightly apart from the others. As we passed, people stopped what they were doing to gape, startled looks on their faces. Several of them bowed slightly towards us. Tosh giggled.

            “Is it like that everywhere you go in this… what do you call it? Reality?”

            “I’m not here very often,” I said. “But… never mind.”