2

SJ listened to Ianto as he spoke with Jack quietly about the situation and then she asked "So, what was the plan in the beginning? All this stuff… you intended resettling here in the village?"

"Yes, I sort of thought it would be the perfect spot but of course my scenario did not have killer bots in it" Ianto laughed as he leaned back to include her. "Or the village written off, more like abandoned or something. I don't know, Zombies or a mega virus would not have caused this damage topside."

"Zombies. You and Owen and your bloody Zombies. Well… we have a couple more years down here before we have to worry about topside and when we do… we can discuss things and see what the world even looks like up there. If we have to relocate, the Valiant can take enough with us for wherever we go" Jack shrugged.

"The babies are both starting to toddle about… with Lulu starting that thing with his hands… fuck… I called Luther Lulu again. Damn it… Toshiko hates that." Ianto groaned "But I mean… if we can sort the Valiant now for a child friendly area, that might be good. Acclimatize them to the idea young."

With that in mind, they added that to the list of jobs on the job board.

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"Ianto?"

"Hmmm?"

"What are you thinking about love?"

Ianto sat back on his heels as he let the screwdriver drop to the floor and the section of console his hell spawn had clambered up and broken still in need of his attention too. The question from Jack was almost a daily occurrence and he now knew it was not a demand for a situation report, rather a need to connect and make sure they are on the same page.

"I am thinking that if we have the kids spend two afternoons a week in the Valiant so they get used to it as part of their living area." Ianto started to explain, "Some toys that are only for there so if we do have to fly for some reason…. Fuck there it goes again."

"What?" Jack swung to see the screen behind him that Ianto had been watching quietly while on the floor working with the broken console.

"That rabbit… see the little piece of its ear. Very cold but apparently not too cold… every few days it powers past, heading somewhere and comes back at dusk, bouncing past to its burrow." Ianto rose and frowned at the screen "I think he is going to a food source."

"Like… green space?" Jack asked with surprise.

"Yeah. I think so. Deer come past that camera too, all heading in the same direction. I think… somewhere out there… some ash has not fallen. Like we thought, there are pockets that missed the fallout." Ianto pondered out loud, his hand plucking at his trouser leg gently to show his chewing on his thoughts still.

"So… what if we catch one and place a tracking unit on it… then see where it goes? If it stops somewhere for an extended time then it is likely grazing?" Jack asked.

"No good… what if it is caught and eaten by a dog pack or something" Toshiko said from her chair, making Jack jump as he didn't know she was there. He turned to find she was cuddling her sleepy baby to her chest as he struggled to stay awake.

"Awwwww Luther love… come on. Uncle Jackie will take you for a loooooong walk" Jack said and she looked at him with open gratitude as it would mean his return would be with a dead weight in the form of a sleeping child.

He did return ten minutes later, placing the little boy on the floor on the blanket where his own son was laying peacefully inspecting the toy Ianto had presented. Jack looked hard and saw it was a brain teaser where you have to move the bead from point A to B. Trust Ianto to have made one of those, and for their child to be a clever little sausage.

"We can catch one of the deer" He said, having thought about it as he walked and rocked the boy to sleep "The deer will be safe, we will get a clear idea of an area it stays in for a period…. Like grazing ... then send a drone maybe for a look?"

"Sounds like a plan." Ianto nodded "But not for a few days… rain coming."

Jack didn't know how, way down here he knows that… but he did.

And Ianto was never wrong.

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"Pissing down up there" Owen said softly.

"Oh well. We can't catch a deer in that. They will have gone to ground" Ianto replied sagely.

"But we will… right?" Owen asked with glee, the thought of using the tranquilizer gun exciting him. God, he missed chasing things. He hadn't known he was such an adrenaline junkie until he was there was no more danger to run from.

"Yes dear" Ianto said with syrupy sarcasm. Patting his arm in a condescending way "don't' worry. Diddums can shoot the big running thing with his special gun."

Owen stared at him. Then laughed happily.

"Sure. So what do we do instead?" Owen asked after a while.

"Photo shoot?" Ianto suggested "Come on…you can still shoot something. We will take some cameras and try for some artistic shots of things… and lots of our kids being so bloody cute that it makes your teeth ache. They grow so fast… in a few years we can look back and remember this time… this place."

Sounded like a plan.