For those who are hoping for a bit more action - next chapter I promise! For those who don't know Camden, google it to see some of the stores and clubs Ianto might go to.

London

Bridget tapped her comm.. "Signal has stabilised sir. Passing monitoring over to central."

Ianto was running. In the flow, lungs and muscles in perfect synch. He flew over the pavements, up over the brick wall, landing neatly in the playground of the local primary school. The moon peeped fitfully from behind the clouds illuminating the climbing frame. He ran up and over it, sprinting from one bar to the other and running down the slide the other side, then running underneath and throwing himself up and using his arms, swinging from one to the other back to where he started.

The buzz from being chased was gone, but he could no more have stopped running than breathing.

Ianto tugged a little fretfully at the hem of his suit jacket. He felt nervous in this environment. Smith's was entertaining its clientele and Ted had insisted on the suit. Ianto was not sure why, as most of the clients were dressed in a mixture of smart to downright shabby casual, and despite the fact they all drove they were downing beer and champagne like it was going out of fashion. He half recognised some quite revered musicians (was that Pink Floyd's drummer?) but the rest were slightly eccentric ex army and RAF types, all a bit barmy about vintage cars.

Ianto had put his excellent memory to use and felt he knew a fair bit about the cars he worked on but the talk around him was beyond him. He did understand their enthusiasm for racing though –they obviously got the same kick out of it as he did running.

He swallowed nervously as one of the RAF types approached him. The man was looking him up and down as though he was meat. The man stuck out a hand and Ianto shook it, trying to channel Pat rather than Aimee in the way he responded.
"Peter Piper, how do you do?" The man was a squeezer, and Ianto had a momentary impression of being caught in a vice, still two could play at that game and he squeezed back. He saw Peter's eyes open slightly wider, and then he smiled slightly. Peter then began what Ianto would later call the interrogation. It ranged over all the work that he did at Smith's and more. Ianto tried to turn away the more personal questions, but he had never come across this kind of conversation before and was unsure of a polite way to do it. He was relieved when Ted came over and asked him to make some coffee for the guests. As he walked away he was surprised to hear Ted tell Peter to leave him alone. "The boy is mine for another six months."

Camden was a revelation. Once he got past the tourist markets and shops all touting tat and found the small shops and stalls selling individually crafted clothes and accessories, he discovered a passion for style and clothes he never knew he had. He also discovered the clubs where he could wear his choice of clothes and be himself or often enough, someone else entirely. Here his ability for deception, for 'passing' was honed. The fact that he could easily turn down the drugs, (been there done that) and still enjoy himself meant that he could party all weekend, and still be fit for work on Monday.


Oh - Pink Floyd's drummer did have a vintage car.