Iconic is Genetic
Disclaimer: By now, it should be quite obvious. I don't own.
Summary: Given that Annabelle's solved her first planetary problem, it should go without saying that she follows her fathers and gets an iconic coat. Ianto/Jack. Thirty-ninth in the "Immortal Janto" series.
Yep, you guessed it. Answering the thing brought up at the end of "It's Like A Weed," Annabelle gets her very first coat. She is eighteen in this story.
This is mainly going to be a cute, relatively short family fic, because, hey, who doesn't like seeing the boys watch their little girl grow up. It's almost like a rite of passage here. Annabelle is seventeen here – wow, I didn't realize how fast this time goes and she's seventeen. Wow . . .
Anyway, no more rambling, here we go!
It was an unseasonably cold October morning when they found it. Both had kept their eyes open, looking for the appropriate gift for their daughter, so, when Jack had spotted it in the window of a store, it made perfect sense that this is what they presented to Annabelle, almost as a rite of passage, welcoming her into the crazy world that she was a part of, as their daughter and a fellow attractor of the odd and weird.
Annabelle was completely stressed out, as any teenager on the brink of going to university would be. Applications would be due soon and she would be going off to pursue her degree.
Regardless, ever since they had promised her that they would buy her a coat, it only made sense that they present it to her before she went off to university. Annabelle would need said coat when she went off to university. Her peers there would need to be knocked dead by her brilliance. But that proved to be harder than either one of them had expected it to be. Ianto and Jack had agreed, right from the get-go, that Annabelle's coat had to be the fitting mix of confidence and trademark, which meant that finding an iconic coat for their daughter was more than a little difficult.
She was a blend of the two of them, personality-wise, so there was no pull in either direction, which made this process even more trying on them. Besides, Ianto had argued, a World War II greatcoat wouldn't suit her, since it was too flashy and dramatic, which suited the more open Jack, and a simple black trench coat would not reflect her unique personality the way it complemented the understated Ianto.
Ergo, when they laid eyes on the coat waiting for Annabelle, both realized that it was perfect.
It was a good thing that Ianto had inherited his father's eye because the coat that was in the store was not a common design, as the proprietor of the store had explained to them, because it was exactly Annabelle's size. Jack had practically started bouncing up and down in excitement. This was absolutely wonderful!
Once they had the coat, it was only a matter of figuring out the presentation of the coat. They didn't want to do it a grand manner because no one else would understand, save the Doctor and Donna, but those two were off on an adventure at the moment.
Ianto had decided that they would leave it for her where she could see it when she got back from school.
The two had locked themselves away in the office, pretending to be working on U.N.I.T. things, despite the fact that they had purposefully avoided doing anything that resembled work after they had found and purchased the coat. Annabelle would find the coat soon enough and they wanted to see her instant reaction. That, Jack had reasoned, was the benefit of being consultants and immortal ones at that. They had the luxury of avoiding non-important work when they were so inclined, especially when they didn't have to deal with the now-dormant Rift that had refrained from spewing out oddities years ago.
Annabelle's squeal of delight alerted them to her arrival and discovery of the coat box sitting on the coffee table in the living room.
Ianto poked his head out of the office, Jack leaning over his shoulder, both watching Annabelle as she set the little note that Ianto had penned. He had simply told her that she had earned her 'stripes' so to speak and her surprise was in the box. They watched as she opened the top of the box. Her face lit up into a bright smile as she pulled out the dark red leather duster from the box, shaking it out.
She held it in her hands for a moment before she pulled it on. Ianto grinned with pride. His well-trained eye had yet to fail him.
Annabelle twirled in the coat, letting the coat tails swirl around her in a slightly dramatic fashion.
After a moment, Jack nudged Ianto and they left the office. Annabelle looked at them as they approached and launched herself at them, hugging them both.
"Dad, Tad, it is perfect!" she exclaimed brightly. "I love it!"
Jack kissed the top of her head. "You are our daughter, Annabelle. You helped to avert a potentially world-threating crisis and, as such, that means that you've earned your coat."
She was smiling happily at the two of them, her glee bubbling over. "How did you know that I loved this coat?"
Ianto raised an eyebrow and briefly exchanged a look with Jack. Okay, neither one of them had expected that reaction. "We saw it in the store and it's lucky that it was the right size, or else we would have had to raise a storm. But, I'll admit it, neither of us knew that you had your eye on it."
A little blush crossed her cheeks. "I've been saving up to buy it, Tad." She hugged them again. "Thank you so much!"
The two immortals hugged her back.
"No girl should have to buy her iconic coat," Jack reasoned, "especially when iconic coat-wearing runs in the family."
"And when saving the world is in her genetic code." Ianto couldn't help but add that. "We expect great things out of you, Annabelle."
"I promise you I will do great things."
Annabelle was bouncing happily as she modeled the coat for a little bit longer. It really did suit her. She was, after all, Ianto's daughter and, as a result, looked good in red. Jack had conceded that red suited her well.
Still, when Donna called them up that evening to meet up with her, the Doctor, and the twins for dinner, it was only fitting that all three arrived at the restaurant wearing their coats. Annabelle had to show off her new coat and who better to show off said coat to than the Doctor, Donna, and the twins?
Not long, I know, but hey, Annabelle needed her coat! This was bouncing around my head and I needed to put it down (or else sleep would invariably evade me).
Regardless, let me know what you think! I really enjoy your feedback and reviews.
As always, I will endeavor to have the next story up as soon as I possibly can!