Finally, here's the last bit. A fluff heavy conclusion, as promised. Sorry I kept you waiting so long, but it was a real pain in the neck (yeah I know, sorry about that too - but it really was!).

Jack climbed carefully down the ladder into the bunker, swearing under his breath as Ianto stirred. "Didn't mean to wake you," he murmured.

"Wasn't really asleep," Ianto assured him, yawning. "Just dozing, is all." He gave a deprecating chuckle. "Guess I've gotten used to having company. Even this bed's starting to feel too big."

Jack hastened to accept the unvoiced invitation. He slid into the bed and wrapped his arms carefully around his lover, telling himself he was only imagining that Ianto felt more frail than usual. Ianto's lips sought his, but Jack met them only fleetingly, forcing himself to draw away before the kiss could deepen.

"None of that tonight," Jack said, not even attempting to hide his regret. He wanted the comfort the intimacy would bring, but Owen would quite rightly have a treasured part of his anatomy on a plate if he exhausted Ianto tonight.

Ianto made a sound somewhere between yawn and chuckle. "Not a chance," he agreed. "Just wanted you to hold me." He broke off; mouth snapping shut midway through another yawn. "God, that's soppy. Forget I said it."

"Soppy's allowable, tonight," Jack said, kissing the tip of that button nose by way of a demonstration. "Might even be mandatory. In the spirit of which, don't you ever scare me like that again, OK?" The light tone belied the haunted eyes. Ianto's arms moved to encircle Jack's waist, delivering a wordless reassurance from the strength of the grip.

The tiny piece of evidence that Ianto really was on the way to recovery shattered whatever shards of control Jack had been clinging to, and he clutched Ianto so hard the young man actually squeaked.

"I nearly lost you," Jack whispered. His head dipped, seeking escape from the startled blue eyes, only to freeze midway in its path to the haven of Ianto's shoulder as he remembered the freshly bandaged bite wound. "I only just got you back and I almost lost you."

Ianto's arms slid up to cradle his skull, guiding it to rest on his chest instead, where the steady thud of a stubborn heart beneath Jack's cheek provided its own reassurance. They didn't speak, because there were no words that would help. And without words, they could both later pretend this moment hadn't happened, which perversely made it all the more precious. And so, in silent accord, they drifted into sleep.

-XXX-

Ianto woke them both by trying to bolt upright at the sound of someone moving overhead.

Jack squinted at the clock and cursed silently. They'd been asleep for four hours at the most. "Relax," he murmured, pushing himself up with reluctance. "It's just Owen."

Ianto looked at Jack in confusion as the hatch opened above them, bathing the bunker in the subdued glow of emergency lighting.

Owen's face appeared in the gap. "Sorry about the noise," he said. "I thought it'd wake you if I put the lights on, but I fell over some crap Jack's left lying about instead."

It was more of an apology than Owen usually offered, so Jack didn't let fly with the barrage of insults lining up on the tip of his tongue.

Jack moved aside with poor grace as Owen shuffled down the ladder and approached Ianto. "I was just going to look in on you," the medic announced. "But since you're awake…" The bedside lamp clicked on.

Ianto was quite glad that Owen had left the cannula in, after all. He wasn't usually scared of needles, but he'd had enough of playing pincushion tonight, so it was a relief that Owen didn't need to stick him with anything in order to take blood samples. Vial after vial filled, and Ianto couldn't help wondering why Owen had pumped him full of blood only to draw it out again.

Owen leaned back with a grunt, the customary sound of satisfaction made by grumpy GPs the world over. "Seems to be clotting at nearly the normal rate," he informed Ianto. "I'm debating whether to give you another transfusion. You might not need it. The red cell count from the last batch wasn't as bad as I'd expected." He tapped a vial thoughtfully. "I'll test this and be right back," he decided. "Blood or saline, either way you need more fluid in you."

"Didn't you go home?" Ianto asked curiously.

"Been napping on the sofa," Owen answered. His eyes travelled to Jack, who was examining the floor quite intently. "Didn't Jack tell you?"

Jack shrugged. "He was tired," he offered, going for virtue.

Owen shook his head at Jack then turned to Ianto. "Try not to go back to sleep just yet," he suggested. "I'll only have to wake you up to connect the drip, and I'd rather you get some solid sleep than naps." He glanced pointedly at Jack. "Get him to talk to you or something."

Ianto worked himself up into a sitting position, his back propped against the bed-head. Jack slumped onto the edge of the bed, hands hanging between his spread knees, quite the picture of dejection.

It might have worked if Ianto wasn't experiencing the beginnings of panic. He could think of quite a few matters that Owen would be only too happy to palm off onto Jack – and none of them were good.

"What exactly are you supposed to be talking to me about?" Ianto demanded. "And why is Owen here instead of out on the pull, or home asleep?"

Jack smiled winningly and pulled Ianto back into an embrace, seeking distraction, or possibly escape, but he'd made the tactical error of leaving Ianto's mouth free to continue firing questions at him. "Am I….is it worse than he's told me? Is….is that why you're being so….." Ianto paused, searching for the right word and settling for the wrong one because they didn't use terms like tender or loving. "So nice?" he finished lamely.

Jack groaned, ceasing his pursuit and flopping gently down, his head once more pillowed on Ianto's chest. "As opposed to being the self-centered shit I usually am?" he asked, tilting his head sideways and drawing on a pout honed to perfection by centuries of practice.

Ianto shrugged, turning his own face slightly away to hide the smile he couldn't restrain. "Just because you don't broadcast your feelings to the general public doesn't mean you don't have any," he offered in reparation, which was insightful enough to render Jack silent.

"But you have to admit it's fairly rare for you to show them," Ianto continued briskly. "And if you think you've deflected me from finding out why Owen's still here, you're mistaken."

The tone was light, almost teasing, but there was enough of an undertone of fear to convince Jack he'd have to explain after all. He sighed heavily.

"Owen's here for me," he admitted. "Not because I didn't heal properly or anything like that," he added hastily, as the pectorals beneath his cheek twitched back into tension. "Just because he….I…."

Ianto waited, with an almost tangible air of patience. Jack propped his chin on Ianto's chest, looking up into his face but unable to quite meet his eyes. "Because he didn't trust me not to fall to pieces if anything went wrong with you. And….and I don't blame him. After the way I…I couldn't…I didn't...bloody hell I was useless out there tonight, wasn't I?"

There was a wrinkle on the sheet, Jack noted. His fingers rubbed over it, trying to smooth it out, while he waited for what felt increasingly like a verdict.

And of course Owen chose that moment to clamber down the ladder again.

"It's all good," the doctor announced with satisfaction. "Red cell count nearly back to normal. I'll just pump some more fluids into you then I'll leave you in peace until morning."

Ianto sighed in relief as Owen slid the cannula out of the back of his hand. With the physical reminders of his ordeal gone, he might be able to make a start on the mental ones.

"That's done, then," Owen announced. "You might feel a bit breathless if you do anything strenuous, so don't." He paused, waiting for the innuendo from one and the eye roll from one the other and grinning widely when he received silence instead.

"Giving him hell, are you?" he asked Ianto, with unusual levels of approval. "Good man. Make sure you get him sorted by the next mission. Before he's got the rest of us as rattled as he is." Jack glared. Owen merely shook his head. "Tonight was frigging woeful all around, and I'm not excusing myself, by the way. Should've gotten to you quicker." He patted Ianto's shoulder, an action too far removed from Owen's usual bedside manner to be reassuring. "Mind, you did pretty well on your own," he continued, brightening. "Didn't even leave anything for me to autopsy."

Ianto frowned. "I only stunned it," he protested.

"You fried it," Owen assured him with a quite unwholesome enthusiasm. "To a crisp, actually. It was crumbling in the wind by the time we got you into the SUV." At which he clambered up the ladder, undaunted by the glare Jack sent after him. "You did, good, Ianto, mate," Owen called, just before the hatch closed behind him. "And don't let him tell you any different."

"I wasn't going to suggest otherwise," Jack grumbled, climbing back onto the bed.

Ianto smiled faintly. "But I didn't mean to kill it," he protested. The very thought of the huge insectoid made Ianto's skin creep, but he still hated the idea that he'd been responsible for its death. "After all," he continued plaintively. "Stun guns aren't meant to double as Bug Zappers."

Jack felt something twist painfully inside him. Ianto really was too good for all this. He'd suffer more from guilt at killing another being than from the injuries that very being had inflicted on him.

"You tried to give it a chance," Jack said firmly. "Well, you made me give it a chance, which amounts to the same thing. "

Ianto relaxed, sagging into the arms that opened to receive him. It was nice not having to explain. Owen might laugh at him for being a 'wimp,' or variations thereof, but Jack understood his reluctance to kill, and mostly approved of it.

"A chance it used to have another go at you." Jack continued firmly. "So it was self-defense, OK?"

"OK," Ianto agreed. He considered that a moment. "So you do believe I can defend myself?" he asked carefully.

Jack bit his lip, well aware of the corner Ianto was about to back him into.

"I do," he agreed, reluctance evident.

"Enough to trust in that, next time?"

Jack sighed. "It's not trust that's the issue here," he protested. "I was scared for you, Ianto. We all were."

Ianto shook his head stubbornly. "They were scared," he said. "Tosh and Gwen – even Owen, maybe. They were scared I'd be hurt, or worse, but it didn't stop them doing what they had to. But you…." He paused, looking at Jack with a mixture of frustration and affection. "You were watching me when you should have been watching it – and that, Jack, is why everything was out just that crucial second or so. The others were waiting to follow your lead, and it wasn't there."

Jack wanted to protest, but there was too much truth in the accusation to deny it, especially to Ianto. "Yeah, maybe," he agreed.

"Because….because of me?"

There was something about the way Ianto said that very last word which made it more a question than an accusation. And it hurt. "Do you really find it that hard to believe I'm scared of losing you?" Jack asked quietly. "Because…'cause I am. Scared enough that I'd keep you in the Hub if I could."

Ianto opened his mouth to argue, but Jack continued before he could get a word out.

"I know damned well that you won't do it. I know we need you out there. I know keeping you out of the field would increase the danger for the rest of them." He paused, but what the hell, they'd already agreed that soppy was mandatory tonight. "But somehow none of that matters, as long as it keeps you safe."

Owen had left the light on, so there was nothing to hide the blush, and it was good to see some color in Ianto's cheeks, whatever the reason.

"And I know I should be giving you a bollocking for even thinking it," Ianto admitted, "But I'm…." The blush intensified. "I'm kind of glad."

"Well, then," Jack said, feeling that he might actually be gaining some ground here. "Given that, you can't seriously expect me to watch you go into danger and not bat an eyelid, can you?"

Ianto chewed his lower lip thoughtfully. "I suppose not," he agreed.

Jack couldn't restrain the tiny surge of hope. Maybe Ianto really would agree to stay in the dubious safety of the Hub.

"So it's probably better if you don't watch me in future," Ianto continued. "At least, no more than you do for the others. Just give me the orders and do your.." He waved a hand expressively. "Leader thing, and trust me to take care of myself."

Jack stared at his lover in disbelief, trying to detect the twitch which would reveal this as one of Ianto's subtle attempts at humor, and finding none.

"Fine," he grumbled. "Next time you put your damned fine neck in a noose, I'll look the other way – quite literally. Satisfied?"

Ianto nodded seriously. "Far more professional that way, don't you think?" He nodded again, firmly in agreement with himself. "There'll be less chance of either of us getting distracted from the mission."

Jack would have thrown up his arms in surrender, except they were still around Ianto.

"You'd better not go weird on me after for not giving a damn," he warned. "I'll probably get enough of that from the girls."

"I won't," Ianto promised. And having extracted the concession he wanted, there was no keeping the yawns back anymore.

Jack reached across to douse the bedside lamp then flopped back down onto the pillows, taking Ianto with him. "Owen's going to gut me for keeping you awake," he accused.

Ianto sniffed as settled more comfortably into Jack's arms. "He's the one who woke me up," he pointed out.

They lay in silence for a few comfortable moments, listening to the other breathe.

"Ianto?"

"Hmmmm?"

"This new regime of yours….When I.….if I….y'know. You'll still be there when I come back, right?"

Ianto yawned again. "I suppose so," he agreed gravely. "As long as it doesn't impede the mission."

"Ianto!"

Ianto chuckled in the dark, a soft, sleepy sound of contentment. "I'll always be there for you, Jack," he said softly. "For as long as I'm able. Or as long as you want me there. Whichever comes first."

Jack tightened his hold on the man in his arms. He couldn't imagine ever not wanting Ianto there when he gasped his way into life, but the events of this very night served as a painful reminder of how easily that comfort could be torn away.

Jack waited until Ianto's body relaxed into slumber before allowing the lids to shut over his freshly damp eyes, and his arms stayed locked around his lover even in the depths of his own sleep.

-XXX-

Epilogue

Weeks later, Jack didn't watch as Ianto worked his way free of the ropes around his wrists. He forced himself not to react when a gun pressed against Ianto's temple, and choked back the cry bubbling in his throat when the trigger clicked.

Ianto, for his part, disarmed the thugs, tasered them into temporary oblivion, emerged relatively unscathed, and didn't go weird on Jack afterwards for not giving a damn.

And it wasn't cold and lonely in the bunker, regardless of what anyone else thought.

Hope you enjoyed. Apologies to those of you who were hoping the vampiric bite would give Ianto immortality, but I couldn't make that work with an overgrown bug doing the biting!
Thank you all for reading, especially those who took the time to review.

Happy New Year to you all.