Sam and Jasper arrived at Charing Cross station and made their way through the crowds toward the Strand, dodging umbrellas, backpacks and the odd toddler on a Gruffalo case. 

They crossed over to The Mall, before climbing the steps toward the Duke of York column. 

‘The Royal Society,’ Sam read out when they stopped at a black palisade gate beside a large cream building. ‘I thought you worked at the Patent office?’ 

‘This is where the real work is done,’ came the evasive reply from his father as he led Sam down some steps to an unremarkable door. It had no buzzer, wore no grandeur. It was just a plain, sturdy panelled door. A tarnished silver plaque was set above a post flap on the wall next to it. 

‘Fabulous Atoms’ it read. 

Sam pointed. ‘You didn’t?’ 

‘Hmm? The sign? Oh, I couldn’t resist. It’s a free service to help people register a patent. Inventors are a lazy lot, especially when it comes to paperwork.’ Jasper slid his hand into the letterbox and Sam heard the mechanical whir of a scanner. Buzz. Click. The door opened, and in they went.