Title: More Than Willing
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Ianto Jones/Tenth Doctor
Fandom: Torchwood/Doctor Who
Rating: PG-13
Table: 25fluffyfics
Prompt: 23, Reunion
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own Ianto Jones or the Tenth Doctor. Please do not sue.

***

Ianto closed his eyes, leaning back against the pillows with a sigh of contentment. Being here with the Doctor was everything he wanted in life; if he never went back to Earth again, he wouldn't care. He had all that he needed to make him happy right here.

Of course, there had been a time when he'd thought that this would never happen. How many nights had he looked out of the windows in his Cardiff flat and wondered where the Doctor was in all of those stars that seemed so far away?

He didn't want to think about that time of his life, when his beloved had seemed so far away from him. The Doctor had been out there amongst the stars, and he'd been on Earth, feeling left behind and, in a way, resentful that he wasn't with his lover.

It had been so hard for him to admit to those feelings -- but when they'd come out, they had erupted and caused a rift that he would have never believed possible between himself and the Time Lord. And for a while, he'd been terrified that he had lost the man he loved.

They had actually lost each other for a while, Ianto told himself, unable to hold back the shudder that went through his body at the memory. That had been the worst time of his life; he'd been so sure that he would never see the Doctor again.

The Time Lord stirred in his arms, looking up at the young man with a worried frown on his face. "Ianto, what's wrong?" he asked softly, one hand moving up to caress Ianto's cheek. "I felt that. You're thinking about something that bothers you."

Ianto didn't want to admit that he'd been thinking about that low time in both of their lives, but maybe it was better to talk about it and get it out in the open than to keep those disturbing memories buried in the back of his mind, where they could jump out to attack him.

"I was thinking about the time we spent away from each other," Ianto told him, hoping that his words wouldn't spark bad memories for the Doctor. He knew that the Time Lord would rather forget about that point of their lives, and Ianto didn't blame him at all.

"That wasn't one of the high points of our relationship, was it?" the Doctor said with a sigh. "I don't like remembering that time, Ianto. I know it's something that neither of us will be completely over for a long time, but I dislike bringing up the subject."

"I know you do, love." Ianto's voice was soft, apologetic. "But that time of our lives played such a large part in showing us just how much we mean to each other -- and it's something that I can't just put out of my mind as though it didn't happen."

"You're certainly right about that." The Doctor's hand moved down, tracing swirls over Ianto's chest with his fingertips. Ianto knew that his lover was writing their names in Gallifreyan; he'd seen the Doctor do it often enough to have memorized the movements.

"It's not so much that time when we were apart that I try to focus on," Ianto continued, hoping that his words wouldn't upset his lover. "It's the reunion after that. I try to remember the first time I looked into your eyes after we brought you back, and what I saw there."

"And what did you see, sweetheart?" the Doctor asked softly, raising his hand again, this time to smooth Ianto's hair back from his face. Those dark eyes were riveted on his; Ianto couldn't have looked away even if he'd wanted to.

"I saw love," Ianto whispered, taking the Doctor's hand and bringing it to his life. Slowly, gently, almost reverently, he kissed the Time Lord's fingertips, his eyes never leaving the other man's gaze. "And I knew then that I'd been right to go after you."

"I couldn't believe that you did something so brave," the Doctor murmured, his gaze still fixed on Ianto's face. "I'd thought that you didn't want me in your life again -- that I'd lost you for good. But there was still a spark of hope buried under all that despair I was feeling."

"There was never any doubt in my mind that I'd find you," Ianto told him, knowing that wasn't entirely true but not wanting to admit it, either to the Doctor or to himself. Of course he'd doubted; how could he have not? At the time, finding his lover had seemed so hopeless.

"Now, you can't say that," the Doctor scolded him, laughing softly. "You know that the three of you had doubts about being able to find where the Master was holding me. But luckily, the Tardis had no such doubts and took you to the right place."

Ianto smiled wryly as he nodded, admitting what he couldn't put into words. "I'd never have been able to forgive myself if I hadn't come after you, you know," he said softly. "I couldn't let us end that way, Doctor. I couldn't give you up."

"I'm glad you felt that way, love," the Doctor told him, his voice almost breaking on the words. "That was the most poignant reunion I could possibly have had with anyone -- to be able to look into your eyes and know that you still loved me."

"Did you ever really doubt that I ever stopped loving you?" Ianto asked him, kissing the Time Lord's fingertips again. "I could never stop loving you, Doctor. No matter what either of us say or do, you're a part of my heart. And you always will be."

"There may have been a part of me that thought I'd never see you again -- but in my hearts, I knew that you'd come for me," the Doctor said, swallowing hard after he spoke. "I should have known that you would, Ianto. I should never have had those doubts."

"I don't blame you for having them, love." Ianto bowed his head to brush a kiss across the Time Lord's forehead, tightening his arms around his lover. "I'd probably have felt the same. After all, our parting at the time seemed very final."

"I knew that it wasn't," the Doctor whispered, his voice low but the words ringing loud and clear in Ianto's ears. "I knew that we would be together. I might have fooled myself consciously into thinking that it was over, but my hearts knew better."

"All I wanted was to be reunited with you," Ianto murmured, raising his hand to caress the strong line of the Doctor's jaw. "I would have done anything to be with you again -- and I was more than willing to sacrifice anything that I might have had to for that to happen."

"I'm glad that you didn't have to sacrifice anything," the Doctor said, a slight smile curving his lips. "If you had, then I'd have felt even more terribly guilty than I already did for doing something so utterly stupid and making you come after me."

"I don't regret doing that," Ianto said firmly. "Not for one second. It was hard to see what he'd done to you, but at least we got you out of there safely. That's the only thing that matters, Doctor. That it's all in the past, and that we're back together."

The Time Lord nodded, sighing softly as he sat up. He leaned forward to brush his mouth against Ianto's, whispering against the young man's lips as he did so. "I have to admit, that was the most grateful I've ever felt at being rescued."

"And I've never felt so grateful that I had the opportunity to rescue anyone," Ianto told him, unable to hold back a smile. "That was the best reunion that I could have dreamed of -- just having you back in my arms again and knowing that you wanted to be there."

"I wanted to be there even when I wasn't," the Doctor whispered, his gaze not leaving Ianto's. "And right now, I want to be exactly where I am. I've always been more than willing to be here, from the first moment that I saw you."

"This is where I always want you to be," Ianto murmured, wrapping his arms around the Time Lord and pulling him close. As their lips met, he was sure beyond the shadow of a doubt that there was nowhere else he would ever want to be -- or anyone else he could ever want to be with.

***