Epilogue - Part Two

Jack hugged Gareth before waving goodbye to Cassie and Carys and moving with Ianto to Torchwood where Owen was waiting to introduce them to their child.

Gareth, admonished to behave himself for his aunts and promising to be on his best behaviour was soon bribed with a hot chocolate into helping clear tables.

Cassie handed Carys a coffee and grinned at her friend. 'It makes me want another baby, seeing them pregnant like that.'

'Wilson talks about it, but the twins are a handful.' She had not had a pleasant pregnancy and wasn't sure she was ready to repeat the experience just yet. 'I would like a son though.'

Cassie laughed. 'Once you hold that baby you will be throwing the birth control out, you mark my words.'

'Will you?'

'I think three really are enough for me, we'd need a bigger place for a start and I love living upstairs.'

'Hmm, thanks for the coffee, I've got paperwork to do.'

Tosh greeted them as they arrived at the Hub and caught them up on Sonja's progress at school. This week she wanted to be a doctor like her father. Last week she wanted to join the circus.

Jack laughed. 'We both know she'll be running this place when she leaves school.'

'Not if I can help it.' Owen shook his head. 'But I like the idea of her being a doctor.'

'So does my mother.' Tosh mumbled as she smiled at her husband.

It was just the four of them in the Hub, Andy and Wilson where in the field dealing with a rift event. Jack just hoped it wasn't gnomes, but they didn't seem to have them in this reality.

Owen scanned Jack to make sure everything was still okay before preparing him for surgery. It was a simple process with the alien technology he had available to him. And within what seemed like minutes Ianto was holding his daughter and kissing Jack.

'Look what we did.'

Jack smiled as Tosh took a few photos for them and congratulations were issued. He held the baby and examined her perfect little fingers and toes and the thick mop of dark hair as he kissed her temple. 'Welcome to the world Branwen.'

Tosh grinned, since getting to know Jack and Ianto she found herself very fond of both men. 'That's a lovely name, what does it mean?'

Jack looked at Ianto. 'It means beautiful raven.'

Owen handed Jack a bottle and chuckled. 'Sounds fitting for your daughter.'

Ianto brushed Jack's hair back as he fed their daughter. 'And so it begins.'

Wilson and Andy came back to the Hub and dumped the containment boxes in a secure room before coming into the sickbay to see Jack and Ianto and met their new child.

'She's not ugly then.' Wilson announced as he passed judgement over the newest member of their extended family.

Andy shoved his friend and had to agree. 'She's a good looking baby, you two did well.'

'Branwen. And we can't wait to introduce her to Gareth.'

'I don't know how you do it Jack, Carys hated being pregnant.'

'The two of you did start with twins Wilson, what did you expect.'

'Well we didn't plan it like that.' He laughed softly. 'But I do love my girls and her da sure loves being a grandda.'

'Am I hearing a little clucking going on?'

Wilson blushed as Tosh smiled at him. 'It don't make you want another wee barin, seeing this one?'

Tosh shook her head. 'I'm happy with the children I already have.'

Andy nudged Wilson. 'Do you get the feeling she's including Owen in that?'

'So it wasn't just me then.'

'Don't you have artefacts to catalogue?'

'Technically Owen, Tosh is our boss, she gives the orders.'

Tosh shook her head. 'And you ask me if I want more children when I have the three of you to deal with at work...' She patted Ianto on the arm. 'You two did good, now, the rest of you, get back to work.'

'I was meaning to ask you Tosh, how are the new recruits working out?'

She smiled. 'This lot look like they might last a little longer than the last few we trialled. But now isn't the time for giving you their performance evals.'

'And where are they today?'

'They all had the weekend shift so they have today and tomorrow off. They don't know about you yet and we wanted to keep it that way.'

'Thanks Tosh, I appreciate it.'

She smiled at Jack as she went back to her never ending paperwork, they had spoken about that a great deal over the last ten years, it had been one part of the job Jack had hated. He was right, every time they saved the world instead of a thank you and a day off, they got more paperwork. And the last ten years had seen a few disasters averted by quick thinking and a whole lot of luck.

She looked at Jack and Ianto, neither of whom looked a day older than when she danced at their wedding. There had been a few times when she'd called on Jack and picked though his experiences to deal with a Torchwood issue. Each time he flatly refused to join her team. She still asked but she knew he'd never choose Torchwood over Ianto.

She didn't blame him, his story still broke her heart, not just because in his story she had never married Owen and never gotten to hold her children in her arms. She had tried to get him to talk about how he had managed to cross into this reality but he was only ever tight lipped about it and said it was all down to a possibility and never elaborated on what that actually meant. She wasn't sure they would ever know the full story behind that. Both men would look a little sad when asked so they stopped asking.

Once Owen was satisfied Jack was fully recovered from the birth of Branwen he farewelled his friends and turned to Tosh, asking her if she was sure they didn't want any more children as he held his wife.

Ianto carried the baby into the shop and Jack followed him into his office. Cassie looked up from serving customers and knew she would have to wait to meet the baby, and she understood that the two men would want to introduce her to their son first. Carys excused herself after a quick peak and went to help Cassie. Ianto had called as soon as their daughter had been safely delivered to give them the good news.

Gareth looked at the baby and rolled his eyes when Ianto insisted he sit down before holding her along with the accompanying lecture about how to hold the baby.

'Tad, I'm surrounded by babies, I think I know how to hold one by now, I never dropped Rhydian or any of the others.'

Jack grinned at his over protective husband and slightly exasperated son. 'Met Branwen Harkness-Jones.

'Branwen Undine, Harkness-Jones.'

Jack's head snapped up as he stared at Ianto. 'What?'

'It's one of Tchaikovsky's opera's, we listen to it all the time, I always wanted to give my daughter Undine as her middle name.' He looked at Jack. 'Why did you react like that?'

'That was her name, Undine.'

'We never talked about it, you never wanted to.'

'Do you think it's her?'

Gareth rolled his eyes, he thought he was used to his father's having cryptic conversations, but it seemed they had a few he hadn't heard before. He frowned as he the baby began to fuss in his arms. 'Dad, tad?'

Ianto took the baby and gave Jack a look that promised this wasn't finished as he changed the baby.

Branwen was a week old when a letter turned up. Carys sorted the mail and put the unopened letter on Jack's desk, since it was addressed to him, marked private and confidential. Jack came downstairs with the baby and set her down for her morning sleep in a crib in the corner of the office. It had been for sale in the shop, Jack having re-purposed it to use while he went though the paperwork with Carys. Most of the children had slept in it at one point or another.

It meant Ianto and Jack could get some work done while the baby slept. And the girls could coo over the baby when they thought no one was looking. It got him out of the house for a few hours and meant Ianto and Carys didn't have to carry on without him. Picking the letter up he withdrew the folded pages and began to read.

Jack, I'm sorry I couldn't tell you everything when we last met and I know you still have questions even now. I was the child conceived in your reality with your other Ianto Jones. I never wanted to tell you that but until I did, I couldn't go home. You needed to know what would happen if you died while pregnant.

Of all the things I needed to wait for, before I could leave, that was the hardest. I hope I gave you a little hope in my leaving, that I would be back. And I think you now understand why I could never tell Ianto my name. Not that I gave you my full name at the time.

I couldn't risk changing anything and there was always the possibility that I might not come back. When I returned to my time I was given the option of writing you a letter to be delivered after I was born. You need to know that it wasn't just you who was brought to this reality. That it wasn't just Ianto's death that wasn't supposed to happen when the three of us died at the hands of the 456.

They wont tell me why they wanted me here with you, just that they did. Memories are starting to fade and I have to trust that they will keep their word and make sure this is delivered to you after I am born again. So I will get to live though the memories I told you about. I know now that it will all still happen because I have been born.

Not many parents get the opportunity to meet the adult their child will one day become, I hope you can be proud of me. Even though is was hard knowing I existed in two realities and that I died before I even began in the first one, I live in this one. Here I am alive.

Don't ever think Gareth and I didn't know we were totally loved. Oh and neither of us are ever going to like brussel sprouts, it doesn't matter how much bacon tad cooks them with. With all my love, Undine.

Jack looked up as Ianto walked into the office, he handed him the letter and smiled. He finally had everything he'd ever wanted and he couldn't wait to see the adults his children were going to grow into. A little worried what her destiny might be to need to be brought here. But he had time to find out. With Ianto at his side, and their two children in their lives, he had everything he needed.

Ianto looked at Jack as he handed him back the letter. 'Well, I guess that answers that question then.'

'About the brussel sprouts?' Jack smiled at his husband.