Time For Cheer
Disclaimer: This should go without saying, but I don't own anything!
Summary: The TARDIS crew celebrates Christmas. Ianto and Jack are especially excited because it's Annabelle's first Christmas. Ianto/Jack, Donna/Doctor, Martha/Mickey. Part of the "Immortal Janto" series.
I know that I've been going one way with the whole family thing, but hey, our two favorite Immortals just had a baby, so you'll forgive me for descending into these sets of adventures for a while.
Note – so, since Jack's an American, I'm using the American saying of "Merry Christmas" for him, but "Happy Christmas" for everyone else.
Growing up, one of Ianto's favorite times of the year was always Christmastime. He always liked having his family together to celebrate the holiday. There was such a sense of love and community that he enjoyed.
Plus, when you're a kid, the presents were also a serious perk.
Now, he found that Christmas brought a new sense of joy to his life. He had Jack and Annabelle to celebrate with, along with the Doctor, Donna, and the twins.
They had agreed that they would spend Christmas Eve with their respected families and then come back together for Christmas Day, culminating in a large-scale dinner that was open to everyone, including the Nobles, the Joneses, and Mickey, Martha, and Theo. Donna had said that it would be the best way.
Christmas Eve had gone over well, especially since Rebecca, Rhiannon, and Gavin hadn't met Annabelle yet, so they spent a vast majority of the evening cooing over the little girl. Ianto had been so happy that they loved the girl and she seemed to enjoy being passed from person to person. He was content to curl up on one couch, cuddling with Jack as the family chatted in the living room, the tree glinting in one corner.
Presents, of course, had been brought out that night, particularly for Jack, Ianto, and Annabelle, since the three would be on the TARDIS for the actual Christmas Day. Annabelle got the biggest haul out of the three of them, though she was still too young to mind Jack tearing open the presents for her.
Ianto chuckled. Jack was a fiend when it came to opening presents.
Finally, as Annabelle was falling asleep in his arms, he nudged Jack subtly, giving him the signal to call the Doctor. Twenty minutes after that, they were making their manners to his family and hauling themselves (presents and all) into the TARDIS, wishing everyone a very happy Christmas.
It had been a relatively easy night for them, all things considered, since the TARDIS had been the main driving force behind the Christmas decorations. Ianto remembered how surprising it had been one day, about a week and a half before Christmas, when they brought back a large Christmas tree for the TARDIS and found multiple boxes of ornaments waiting for them. That had been a very enjoyable and worry-free afternoon and evening, decorating the TARDIS for the holidays. The Doctor had even gone so far as to string a line of lights around the outside of the TARDIS, which Jack topped by attaching a sprig of mistletoe to the inside of the door.
Christmas Eve was wonderful, with his family, but, for Ianto, it was a major treat to be woken up on Christmas morning by Jack. Ianto smiled at his husband as the American immortal slowly trailed kisses down Ianto's chest.
"You want to get lucky tonight, don't you?" Ianto asked with a smile.
"Just like I do every night."
It would have been a thoroughly enjoyable moment, but Annabelle decided to wake up as well – and brought all of the pains and joys of an infant in the morning.
"I'll see to Annabelle," the Welshman promised, kissing Jack on the lips.
As per their usual routine, Ianto rolled out of bed, leaving a very disappointed Jack in his wake. He smiled. Even if it was Christmas (and Jack was trying to get lucky), Annabelle was still a baby and needed their care over anything else. He pulled on a robe, tying it tightly. From the bed, Jack gave a hum of appreciation, making Ianto smile. He knew where Jack's eyes were going, but he wasn't going to say anything.
Jack called after him, "Don't rush. Take all the time you need." There was some innuendo in there, but also an honest promise.
After tending to the girl's needs, Ianto picked her up and carefully carried her out of the nursery that the TARDIS had so generously attached to their bedroom and back into their bedroom. He stopped, cradling Annabelle. Ianto's jaw dropped at what he saw there, a smile forming a moment later.
Jack stood in front of the bed, a robe pulled on, with the grin of a cat that got the cream on his face. A very large pile of presents sat on the bed behind him.
"Merry Christmas, Ianto."
Ianto chuckled, recovering. "Happy Christmas to you too, Jack." Annabelle gurgled in Ianto's arms. He looked down at their daughter. "And a very happy Christmas to you too, my Annabelle."
Jack closed the distance between them and looked down at Annabelle. "Your first Christmas of many more, little angel."
That moment was sweet. Ianto met Jack's eyes and he smiled.
Finally, Jack laughed and pulled Ianto (and Annabelle) towards the bed and the large stack of presents.
Christmas morning was quite enjoyable, spent tearing through the packages that were waiting for them.
Ianto didn't know how the tradition started but it was custom on the TARDIS that families would open presents together before having breakfast together. Donna and the Doctor would be with the twins, going through their whole pile of presents. Before, when he was by himself, he liked having the opportunity to think about the people he wanted to spend Christmas with (namely Jack and, to a lesser extent, his family). Last year, when it was just Jack and him, it had been a long morning of slow and enjoyable sex, before a quick shower and breakfast. Now, they had their new tradition.
They opened presents as a family.
Annabelle sat in her baby seat between them on the bed while Jack and Ianto took turns opening presents, showing the little girl what she had received. Her favorite of the whole lot was a soft cloth rabbit, a gift from Martha and Mickey.
Finally, the last presents opened were the ones that they had bought for each other.
Ianto had to retrieve his present for Jack from the closet. Jack tilted his head to the side as Ianto wheeled it him, the large item carefully wrapped to obscure it's true shape.
Jack looked at Annabelle, saying to the baby, "Your Tad is very confusing at times."
That was a compliment, he supposed. "Of course," Ianto replied, "but it'll be worth it once you open it."
He grinned as Jack opened his present, watching Jack's face split into a bright and hopeful smile. He was quite proud of himself, managing to track down an exact copy of the coffee machine that had been in the Hub, complete with a very large mug emblazoned with Jack's name on it, Jack chuckled and raised an eyebrow as he saw the stopwatch hanging (seemingly innocently) from the front of the machine.
"You're giving me ideas, Yan," Jack hinted, leaning in to kiss him.
"Wait until later," Ianto promised.
Then, it was Jack's turn to present his present.
From his bedside table's bottom drawer, Jack produced a square box, meticulously wrapped. Jack handed it over to Ianto with a cheerful grin.
Ianto took his sweet time carefully opening the present. He could see Jack getting impatient, but he was enjoyed tormenting his husband. It wasn't very often that he got to do something like that, so he grabbed the opportunity when it was presented to him.
Naturally, Jack floored Ianto with his thoughtfulness and generosity.
To most men, a silk waistcoat and a tie would not seem like a whole lot, but, to Ianto, it held a lot of meaning, especially when he realized the significance of the waistcoat and tie. The dark blue waistcoat was made of a heavy, durable silk, while the dark silver tie was a delicate contrast to it.
"I know the TARDIS couldn't fix that gunshot hole in your favorite waistcoat," Jack said, "but I hope that this will make it up to you."
He leaned in and captured Jack's lips.
"Thank you, cariad. I love it."
"Good."
A noise from Annabelle drew their attention. "Sounds like someone wants breakfast," Ianto said.
Which is why they traipsed into the kitchen, still wearing their pajamas and robes.
No one said anything because everyone else in the kitchen was still in their pajamas as well, even the Doctor, who was looking completely ridiculous in maroon striped pajamas and his usual trainers, but Ianto wasn't going to say anything.
Breakfast itself was fun, as usual. The twins were going on and on about their Christmas presents, before dying down when Ianto present them with Christmas-themed pancakes. The coffee machine in the kitchen was busy, especially given Jack's tendency to drink coffee in the morning. He shared a secret smile with Jack, knowing that Jack was thinking about the coffee machine in their room. Ianto did laugh when he saw Jack produce the mug that he had given him, holding it out with wide eyes, begging for coffee.
All in all, Ianto found that Christmas on the TARDIS was weird (as usual) but very entertaining.
So, when the afternoon wore onto evening and the smell of dinner came wafting through the hallways, he found himself excitedly in the control room, flying the TARDIS with the Doctor up to Cardiff to pick up his family, before going to get Martha and Mickey. They had already gotten Sylvia and Wilfred and both were back with Donna, helping set up.
It only took a few minutes before they were slowing down and stopping outside his parent's house.
He opened the door as his family came walking up the TARDIS, their eyes wide. Though they knew about their adventures in the blue police box, through time and space, this was their first time actually in the machine.
Rhiannon and her husband, Johnny, had dropped jaws as their son looked as if he wanted to go explore. Gavin and Rebecca were equally interested in the TARDIS. Gladys and Stuart both were well in control of their expressions.
"Welcome to the TARDIS," the Doctor exclaimed as Ianto ushered them aboard. The Doctor had a slightly frantic look on his face and, as soon as the door was closed, he was running around the controls, sending the old girl back into action.
"Don't worry about that," Ianto assured them, as they jolted in surprise at the sudden movement. "We still have a few friends to pick up and Donna's a bit frantic about dinner."
"I would avoid the kitchen for right now," Jack added as he walked into the control room, carrying Annabelle. "Wilf only just escaped by playing the great-grandchild card and Sylvia's trying to rope Donna in. The turkey just exploded and the stuffing looks ready to walk out of the room."
"In other words, everything's right on schedule."
"It is." Jack wrapped an arm around Ianto's waist and kissed his cheek, cradling Annabelle in one arm. "I was right. The waistcoat does look good on you."
Ianto chuckled. "I do like it."
Jack leaned in and whispered into his ear, "It'll look even better when I'm taking it off."
He elbowed Jack in the side. "Not in front of my family!"
"Fine!"
Both men heard the Doctor's loud cough and both rolled their eyes simultaneously. The TARDIS gave a little lurch, sending the Jones family into a mad scramble for hand holds.
Jack looked at Ianto's parents and said, with a definitive tone, "Welcome to our world."
Yep, Christmas was definitely Ianto's favorite time of the year.
What'd you think? Good enough? Please let me know!