Yes, I know this story was pretty much abandoned. For that I am so sorry. It has been ages since I have been able to write anything with work commitments and such, but I was reading over my old work the other day and I started to wonder why I was writing all this stuff and never completing it. Anyway, I have decided to take another stab at this one, since I loved all the ideas I had for it. Plus, I really wanted to have a conflict between Torchwood and UNIT.

Note: Un-Beta'd. All mistakes are my own.

Well, he had finally done it. All those years of hard work were finally over. 21 year old Ianto Jones had graduated from London University. It should have been a great day for him. The celebration had started at the conclusion of the ceremony this morning and for some of Ianto's fellow students, looked to be continuing well into the night. But for Ianto there was little to celebrate, as the crushing realisation of his situation was made clear. As the other students gathered with their families, Ianto sat alone. Rhiannon and Johnny had arrived to witness the ceremony but thanks to Johnnys job, had been forced to head straight back to Cardiff after a quick congratulations. The day pass from Providence Park had been rejected so his mother had not been able to attend. And the only other member of the family, Aunt Harriet, had failed to show up due to a schedule conflict. David, Iantos childhood friend had been busy interning at the local hospital where he was training as a doctor and although he had many friends on his course, they were all too busy celebrating with their families to include Ianto in their plans.

And he still had to deal with this latest issue. Sitting on the well kept lawn of the campus, Ianto glanced down at the paper again. It was not his diploma, stating his successful completion of his degree. Instead it was an eviction notice. Collage accommodation was hard to come by and the university officials were quick to jump on any rooms which might become available in the not too distant future. Ianto now had three days to pack up and move off campus. And he was in despair.

He had no job, no money to pay for another apartment, and nowhere to go. Sure, David had invited him to move in, an invite which had already been politely withdrawn by Davids girlfriend. He couldn't go to his Aunt Harriet, who was way too busy with her politics to even think of inviting him into her home. And sure, Rhiannon and Johnny had invited him to stay with them, but they had just had a second baby. There was no room in their world for their jobless younger brother.

Ianto sighed and wondered what he could do. A shadow appeared in his vision. Ianto blinked and looked at the source. A man stood in front of him, blocking the light. Behind him, stood a young woman. They both smiled at him.

"Ianto Jones?" the man asked.

Ianto nodded, his gaze moving between the two. The man held out his hand.

"My name is Rupert Howarth" he said, as Ianto shook the offered hand. "This is Lisa Hallett" he nodded to his companion. "We are researchers for the Torchwood Institute."

"A Pleasure" Ianto muttered as he slowly stood up, his mind racing. Torchwood? He had never heard of it. It sounded like some sort of medical charity.

The man grinned at Ianto's face, probably guessing his confusion. The he reached into his pocked and pulled out a notebook.

"Now lets see what we have here." He muttered to himself as he turned a few pages. "Ah, here we go." He looked up.

"Ianto Jones, aged 21. Born 19th August 1983 in Wales. A remarkable student, you were once listed by UNIT as someone to watch after breaking into a power plant when you were 14. Although it has never been official, school results put your IQ as close to 150, making you an honorary member of Mensa. It is already known that you have a photographic memory. And just today you have graduated top of your course with a degree in Theoretical Mathematics. Put frankly, Mr Jones, you are brilliant."

Ianto stared at the man as he tried to process all the new information. Finally, he found his voice.

"Where did you find all that information?"

The man ignored him and continued speaking.

"You are currently looking for a job, something which we are willing to offer you." He held out a card. "We want to start you off as a Junior Researcher. The moneys good and so are the hours. You will automatically receive accommodation. Call this number and it will all be arranged. I suggest you use this weekend to move. You will start on Monday morning. Just be at this address at 8 O'Clock. Mention my name at the desk and we can get started. Any questions?"

Ianto took the card, his voice once again failing him. He stared at it. That was why he didn't notice the two men walking towards the little group.

"Rupert!" The voice called.

Ianto glanced up at the newcomer and started. Although he was unsure about the IQ comment, Howarth had been right about the photographic memory. Ianto remembered like it was yesterday, meeting Sylvester Newman of UNIT. He remembered the man's secretive comments about being watched and growing up. He remembered spending all that night trying to find out about UNIT, only stopping when he realised he would have to hack into the defence network. After all, he was already in trouble with the police following the power plant incident.

Ianto silently watched as Howarth turned to face the newcomers.

"Sylvester." He called. "Here to congratulate me on Torchwoods newest employee?" he asked.

Sylvester glared at him before turning to Ianto.

"Hello Mr Jones. I trust you remember me."

Ianto just nodded. Sylvester smiled but it was bitter.

"I am sorry that it took this long to contact you. My superiors thought it would be a good idea to allow you to finish your schooling before we offered you a job with UNIT. It now looks like we were too late." He glared at Howarth again, who met his gaze with a smug smile.

"Did you bully him into it Rupert?" he asked.

Howarth laughed.

"Of course not Sylvester." He replied. "I just covered all the basics. After all, there is nothing like job security for young people these days."

Sylvester growled.

"I'm sure you did." He muttered.

Then he turned back to Ianto and held out another card.

"If you change your mind about Torchwood, UNIT would be happy to have you. Just give me a call whenever you feel like it."

Then he turned, nodded to his companion, and left.

Ianto finally found his voice.

"Wait!" he called.

The retreating figures didn't hear him and were soon out of sight. Ianto turned to the remaining two.

"What the hell is going on?" he asked.

Howarth smiled.

"It's a big world out there kid. And now that you are ready, you are going to be a part of it. Don't forget, 8 O'Clock Monday." He turned and walked off, leaving Ianto speechless once more.

A hand touched his shoulder. The woman, Lisa, smiled at him. Ianto couldn't help but return the smile.

"I know it may seem a lot at the moment, but trust me. There are so many wonders in this world that most people will never see. If you have the courage to walk through that door and enter Torchwood, all that will be yours."

She smiled again and took a step back.

"See you Monday." She said. Then she turned and walked away.

Ianto watched her leave before looking down at the two cards. The one Sylvester had given him was the same one he had received when he was 14. The other was a plain card. On one side was Howarth's name and a phone number. Ianto flipped the card and glanced at the other side.

TORCHWOOD – Canary Wharf

Bitting his lip, Ianto thought about his options as they now were. He had no idea what Torchwood or UNIT really did but somehow, finding out sounded really exciting. It was clear UNIT had been watching him for a while, but Torchwood was offering him security. Plus, if he went with Torchwood, there was a chance he could get to know Lisa better. Ianto smiled slightly at that.

Slipping the cards into his pocket, Ianto starched his back before stepping off the grass and onto the footpath. Making his way back to his room, he couldn't help but smile. His future suddenly looked a lot brighter.

Ok, just for anyone interested. Aunt Harriet is Harriet Jones, Prime Minister. I liked her too much to not mention her. I used the rumours of Ianto knowing someone at Providence Park to make the whole thing about his mum. Howarth is an actual character. He was Ianto's mentor at Torchwood One. And I know in 'Fragments' Jack listed Iantos school results as not being great. I will try to explain that in the next chapter. Ok, I think I covered everything.