Blame It On The Moon

***Eclipse: The passing of part of a celestial body or its entirety, into the shadow of another.***


Some nights there was playful banter and long, languid love making; other nights there was nearly a word spoken before Jack would envelop him in needy, harsh kisses followed by bruising, unrelenting fucking. Ianto had come to know the signs throughout the day, the signals if you will, that would hint as to the Captain’s preferred mood of the evening. Today had been somewhat unusual in that Jack had spent most of it hidden away in his office behind piles of what looked like ancient books.

“Sir”, Ianto questioned when he checked in on Jack as the day drew on “Is everything alright in here?”
“Hmm?” Jack absentmindedly murmured at the curious tone. “Yeah, why?”
“If I’m being honest Sir, the last time I saw you this immersed in a book was when you got hold of that copy of Out: Gay Alien Porn Exposed that we confiscated from that, erm what did we call it, massage parlor? Yes, I think that’s right.” Ianto deadpanned.
“What? Oh, yeah that. Hey, whatever happened to that copy anyway?” Jack wondered.
“Archives sir. No worries, cleaned it off first, filed it under ‘Weird Alien Things That Turn Jack On’. We really are going to need a bigger filing cabinet for said items…Sir.” Ianto continued, hardly getting any response from Jack.
“Yeah sure, more cabinets. Whatever you need.” Ianto was pretty sure he had just gotten the brush off when Jack called back for him as he was almost out the door. “Ianto? Hey, could you do me a favor and get everyone out of here kind of early tonight?”
“Certainly sir, will there be anything else?” Ianto rolled his eyes, wondering what sort of lame excuse he could come up with this time that didn’t sound like ‘hey, gonna shag the boss…again, could you all get the hell out, thanks.’
“Yeah, could you run out and get a bottle of your favorite wine? I’m having company, special night.” And with a wink he added “Thanks, Yan.”
To say that this put Ianto in a pouty mood would be an understatement. Company? A special night? Who the hell was special enough to be let into the hub, and at night no less. And now Ianto was to run out and fetch a bottle of wine for Jack to ply his said company with? He grabbed his keys off his desk and gritted his teeth as he thought of a hundred reasons why he should say’ no, go get it yourself’, finally deciding when at the liquor store that since he was there already he may as well go in. But this cheap hussy wasn’t getting the good stuff, sod it, he or she could drink the stuff from the box.
Back outside the Hub, half an hour or so later, Ianto pulled into his spot to find all the cars, save for the Torchwood SUV, already gone. Apparently Jack couldn’t wait and made his own excuses to send the team home. His pouty mood was quickly turning pissy, and the short walk from the car had him uttering to himself out loud, cheap box of wine slung haphazardly at his hip and razor sharp Welsh wit ready to slice. He made his way inside, practicing all the things he would say, hoping he would be gone when this special guest arrived. He was pretty sure he didn’t want a visual of Jack’s latest conquest; it was hard enough to look himself in the mirror some mornings and he couldn’t bare to see that same lust for Jack on someone else’s face. The pouty mood that had turned pissy was then turning somewhat sad and self pitying.
He made his way into the Hub and Jack’s office. He opened the almost never closed door intending to put the wine down, make some snide, self deprecating cracks and get out of there. The warm glow of candles all around the tidied up space caught him off guard and at first he thought maybe he was too late, maybe the guest, though he hadn’t seen any out of place cars, was already there. He dropped the wine on the desk and had a foot out the door when he heard soft music, something in Jack’s favorite forties style, drifting through the room. Not a moment later there was Jack, coming up the ladder from the small room beneath the office, dressed impeccably in Ianto’s favorite blue shirt and black pinstriped trousers. He almost forgot he was angry with Jack, the hitch in his throat over the sheer attractiveness of the other man betraying him.
“There he is!” Jack exclaimed, ear to ear grin when he saw Ianto had returned.
“And here I go.” Ianto retorted. “Don’t want to get in the way.”
“No, Ianto, get in my way, please, I beg you.” Jack played.
Seething, Ianto spat out at him, “I am sorry sir but I am not a toy. I don’t know what you’re playing at, but I want no part of it.” A long pregnant pause before Ianto composed himself, adding before he headed for the door again, “I’ll be leaving for the night then.”
Jack met him at the door, his stride quicker than Ianto’s, and simply blocked the exit. “I don’t remember calling you a toy, and the last time I checked, the only thing I was playing at was you. And I think we both enjoyed that, didn’t we?” Jack flashed a smile at Ianto who had finally looked up from the floor and to Jack’s face. “Now what is this all about?”
Ianto sighed, clenched fists jammed into his pocket and eyes, though looking at Jack’s face, unable to meet his gaze. “I just…You’re having a guest and I thought…The candles…The wine…Sending everyone home early…” Ianto looked into Jack’s eyes finally and gestured his hands up and down his form with a raised eyebrow, “…You…”
A smile broke out over Jack’s face as he realized what was happening and he let out a small laugh.
“What could possibly be funny?” Ianto thought as contemplated slugging Jack.
“I get it. Ianto, I get it! You thought that I…That this whole thing…Wait, are you saying I look, what, hot?” Jack remembered the way Ianto looked up at him and gestured over the outfit a moment ago.
“Jack!” Ianto couldn’t take much more of him. “What whole thing?”
Jack stepped back away from the door and closer to Ianto. “This” He swept his arms open. “This whole thing; I am having special company tonight, Ianto, I am having you.”
Ianto could feel the heat creeping into his cheeks and hoped that the rift would open up right then and swallow him whole. “Me? What is so special about my company? You have me up here almost every night; and sometimes during the day even. I don’t recall candles or music or…” Ianto was mumbling, fists finally unclenched and arms coming up to cross defensively across his chest.
“Ianto Jones, you are always special company.” Jack reached out his hand and cupped Ianto’s chin, tilting it upwards towards him. “And this is a special night.” Jack took let go if Ianto’s chin and took hold of his hand, leading him over to the small sofa in the corner of the glowing room. “Don’t you want to know what it is?”
Ianto shrugged his shoulders “Sure?” He questioned if he was ready for what sort of special night this might be to Jack.
“Well, I was reading this afternoon, as you might have noticed. I dug up some stuff from the archives when I read in the paper that there was a lunar eclipse tonight. And by the way, when I returned the stuff down there, I couldn’t find that copy of Gay Alien Porn Exposed, you’ll have to show me where that cabinet of stuff that turns me on is. Curious that I didn’t know about that. Anyway, I remembered some stuff about eclipses that I had read, some ancient stuff that Torchwood One found ages ago.” Jack tended to babble when he got excited.
“I’m listening” Is all Ianto said.
“Lunar eclipses are stuff of myth and lore, the stories go back as far as time itself. It is said that the red moon can do crazy things to a person; they become truly a lunatic if they lie naked beneath it. It is said to bring forth energy like none other, a chance for new beginnings and unusual occurrences…And a lover or two have been known to feel extra amorous due to its red luminescence…” Ianto interrupted Jack’s tall tale with a chuckle.
“Jack, come on, you expect me to believe this? You of all people certainly don’t need an extra amorous lover, since you find plenty on your own, red glowy moon or not. You also need no such amazing energy though you might be a lunatic.” Ianto laughed softly at the slightly crestfallen look on Jack’s face and stood up to leave.
“Ianto, I may not need those things, but I would like….I feel like this could be a new beginning…I feel like this…thing…you and I…is a slightly unusual occurrence….” Jack trailed off, surprised by the hand that reached out for his and dragged him to his feet.
“You did this for me?” Ianto asked him.
Jack interlaced their hands, “Yeah” answered.
“Dance with me” Ianto said to Jack and the two men started a slow sway to the music encompassing the otherwise quiet room, their lips immediately meeting in a series of soft, anything but chaste kisses. Too soon the sweet song ended and their bodies parted.
“How about some wine?” Jack asked.
“Sure, yeah, I’ll get it.” Ianto started to walk out the door.
“Whoa; where are you going? I have the stuff you brought back right there on the desk.” Jack pointed to said box of wine.
“Oh, that, right, that’s for company sir. I keep the good stuff in the archives; no one ever looks down there.” And he made his way out the door before giving Jack that coy look he has down to a science.
Jack quickly followed him out the door “Hey, do you think we can find that magazine while we’re down there….”

The end.