11
Ianto felt something in his hip click as he rolled Jack over it, flinging him back onto the mat and Jack let out a chuff of air, then rolled to his hands and kneed coughing "Fuck. Winded…. Me…. That… strong!"
"Sorry" Ianto straightened up and grimaced stretching out the hip "Got a nag"
"You OK?" Jack finally got to feet concerned now as their nightly self-defence sessions in the silence of the sound booth and it's padded flooring had led to Ianto getting a bit bruised. So far his father had not noticed.
"Yeah… I didn't lock my knee. My fault. Too tired" Ianto felt it release and smiled as he swung to Jack "I had no idea beating someone up was so much fun."
"Oi! I AM letting you!" Jack defended himself.
"Yeah …. Yeah.. I could take ya" Ianto laughed, then sat at the piano "You know… this all feels like a game. Make believe. Like it will never really happen."
"You got those papers?"
Ianto lifted up the music folder full of bits of paper and even some postcards form fans and fanart, the papers slid in the back almost invisible "I am glad Toshiko let me take them to read and consider."
"She knows your faither made you sign things with no explanation or consideration. Of course anything we need you to sign for what comes next is all your choice, you know that right?" Jack asked, reaching for the signed copies.
"But… it all feels like…."
"Playing a game."
"Yeah."
"Ianto, we are almost there. One more week. Can you do it Tiger? One more week and we are out of his reach. These will be the last of what Toshiko needs to secure your future. It releases the money to the other accounts; it also formalizes Mica's custody and blocks another swung at conservatorship from your father." Jack folded the papers carefully and slid them into the inner pocket of his Great Coat which was on the back of his chair.
"Right. Come on, put some music on and we will try some more hand to hand" Jack rose as Ianto nodded selecting one of his tunes and as they rose to circle one another the door to the outer office opened and to Ianto's horror, his father appeared at the glass.
Jack saw too, seizing Ianto's hand and swinging him around, not in a fighting stance… a dance move. Ianto found himself dancing with Jack, the rhythm intoxicating… as was Jack.
The song finished and the inner door opened, Ifan stepping into the sound booth "what are you doing?"
"Ianto was a bit nervous about meeting Ellen. I told him that if he is too shy to talk too much, dance with her. She loves dancing and the crowd love it too" Jack laughed. "I had no idea he had no dance moves."
"Good idea, yeah. She does like to dance with her guests" Ifan nodded, buying it as he sat at the piano where his son had been and asked "And the piece you will play?"
"I am thinking… dancing frogs or maybe she would like Fireflies" Ianto shrugged "What one would you suggest Da?"
"Well… the Firefly one is sort of fanciful, but the Butterfly Dance might be the one she likes the most. There was that dancing troop of little kids that released a video for that. We might be able to get them to dance around the piano." Ifan lit up at the thought, rising from the seat like the decision was made.
As always, Ifan had decided therefore everyone had decided.
Ianto started to play the Butterfly Dance and Jack listened to the whimsical tune as he watched those fingers fly. Clearly it was written for Mica.
Ianto was hanging in there.
Just a little bit longer.
.
.
It was only a day to go, tomorrow would be the last day to either resign the conservatorship or let it laps and Jack was watching Ianto like a hawk, the younger man's fear coming off him in waves. More than once his father had berated him for missing a note or playing the wrong song and Ianto was almost in tears.
Jack was about to tell Ifan that Ianto was nervous about the tour and needed a day off when his hone vibrated in his pocket and he fished it out, swinging away from the yelling senior to hear Toshiko's voice.
"Hey, speak to me" he said with more joviality than he felt. Smiling back at the men like it was a great friend and a good conversation.
"We got a problem".
"What?"
"He has an appointment with his lawyer this afternoon, fucker is coming out there to the house. Something about paperwork so… problem." She sighed down the line as Jack felt his blood turn to ice in his veins.
"Shit. Suggestions?"
"Well... my first thought is to attack the lawyer somehow. Sideline him so he has to put off the meeting. Something came up kinda deal" she relied "If that fails, I will have to get nasty. We are so close."
"Yeah… I know. So bloody close" Jack rubbed his face turning back to see Ianto slamming down the piano's lid to rise and face his father. The shock on Ifan's face clear as Ianto had NEVER done this before and now, today of all days when he didn't need this shit, the little bastard wanted to go nose to nose?
"IANTO!" Jack yelled with alarm as he saw the balled fists "Come on. You haven't eaten again, have you. Come on, stop that bullshit. Come on, walk it off, let's go make a sandwich before you kill someone!"
Ianto's gaze did not leave his father's, Ifan's alarm growing as he instead stepped closer, their noses almost touching as he said in a low dangerous tone "threaten her one more time Da. I dare you, threaten MY child."
"IANTO!"
Ianto stepped off, finally breaking eye contact to step down from the stage and follow Jack out of the room leaving his father to slump onto the piano stool with relief. He had never seen his own father's rage in the boy before and for a moment…. He had actually scared him.
He really is his son.