The Silver Spoon
"You're calling it what?" Ianto asked, raising a surprised eyebrow.
Kathy Merensdatter clutched nervously at her mother's talisman, a small, round bit of bronze on which she often unconsciously cast mesmerizing spells. She was one of Ianto's favorites, but the spell was distracting.
"I want to call it the Silver Spoon, sir," she whispered, dropping her eyes and looking embarrassed.
Ianto very carefully did not swear at himself. Kathy was soft-hearted; his incredulity had made her self-conscious.
"It's your choice, Kathy," he told her gently. "She's your dyne, after all." He smiled at her proudly. She blushed a little. "But why? It is a bit of an odd name."
"Beggin' your pardon, sir, but you're one to talk," she whispered. She glanced at him, turned even redder than before, and then looked at the desktop. Ianto chuckled.
"Good point," he said wryly, and the red faded from her cheeks. She glanced at him shyly.
Kathy and Rob were his protégés. He knew he wasn't supposed to have favorites, but he couldn't quite help it. Silvia was close to his heart, as was Gil and even odd little Dan, but at the end of the day it was Kathy and Rob he adored. Jack had his favorites too, of course—Tina Mills, brilliant and cheerful, Olive of Tirragan, fierce as anything, and Liam of Whitehorn, the prankster with an eye for explosions.
Kathy had gotten better over the last six years; when the subject wasn't personal, when she forgot to be embarrassed, she was quite the chatterbox. Ianto had spent long, late evenings with Kathy and Rob, utterly distracted from whatever lesson he was supposed to be teaching, laughing with them over this or that. Today, however, was different; the name of her aerodyne was clearly personal, and at her heart she, like Ianto, was very private.
"It's just—" she said quietly and then finished in a rush, "It's just Dan, he promised me once he'd buy me a whole silver tea set," she blurted, her face lighting in a fond smile. Ianto raised an eyebrow.
"Dan Markam," he said dryly. "Promised you a—"
"Tea set, yeah," she giggled. "I mean, he's Dan, right? It's silly; he'd never do it. But you remember, that day he was in trouble with that Housemistress in Corus? He'd stolen a spoon."
Ianto was oddly touched on Kathy's behalf. "He tried to steal one for you?" he asked. She nodded.
"But he only got a spoon. And, I mean," she fidgeted with the talisman, not looking at Ianto. "Me old Ma's dowry," she whispered, looking at the bronze in her hand. "It was the pendent and a silver spoon. That's why Dan was trying to get me a tea set. Da sold the spoon, but I stole the pendent. Besides, Bronze Pendent doesn't sound good at all." She smiled weakly at her hand.
"No," Ianto agreed. "It doesn't. Silver Spoon." He thought about it for a second. Kathy looked at him with vulnerable eyes.
"I like it," Ianto smiled at her, and the grin he got in return was bright enough to light the room. He wanted to crack a joke about naming Rob's dyne after a fork, but it was too new, and such a joke would inevitably hurt his vulnerable student, and Ianto didn't want that. "An aerodyne called the Silver Spoon. Actually, a spydyne called a spoon. No one will know what you're talking about—which is always an advantage," he praised.
"I was thinking that!" she said, looking up at him, still grinning, confidence restored now that she had his approval. "And, well, it makes my flag really easy, doesn't it? A fork."
Ianto laughed, not expecting the joke. "No, no, that should be Rob's flag," he told her and she giggled. Not as vulnerable as he thought, then. Good.
"We'll match," she smiled. "Do you know what he's going to call his yet? He was having trouble coming up with names."
"He hasn't spoken to me about it," Ianto shrugged, leaning back in his chair, relaxed now that she was smiling.
"Ianto Jo-hones!" sang out a voice. Ianto rolled his eyes at Kathy, who giggled.
"Yes, Jack? I'm in my office," Ianto called back. Kathy put her hand over her amused grin.
"Our Silvia just did something wonderful," Jack bragged, breezing in.
"Yeah? Well our Kathy finally named her machine," Ianto boasted. Kathy blushed shyly at the proud 'our.'
"Really? Great! What's she called, then?" Jack grinned, striding over to rest a hand on the back of Kathy's chair.
"The—the Silver Spoon, I think, sir," she said softly. Jack beamed at her.
"I love it," he praised and Kathy's face lit with delight.
"What did Silvia do, sir?" she asked quietly.
"Silvia's Risk just made the record for speed," Jack said. "You know what that means, Ianto? No more carrying messages; she's going to be a currier."
"Thank the Hag," Ianto muttered. "I hate being a pigeon."
"I know. And that means you, Kathy Merensdatter, are next!" Jack crowed and plucked Kathy's hands, hauling her out of the chair to spin her around. Kathy, long used to his antics, just giggled and sent a help me glance at Ianto as Jack whirled her around.
"The Silver Spoon, the best spydyne the world will ever see!" he praised, and Kathy giggled again.
"You should give Captain Jones and Rob some credit, sir," she said and Jack scoffed.
"The Tosh? Nah—" he lifted his eyes and grinned, flirting with Ianto right over Kathy's head.
"Captain Harkness!" she scolded, laughing.
"You shouldn't encourage him," Ianto said dryly, gently taking the rather overwhelmed Kathy from Jack. He didn't stop the game, though; he spun her out, as though waltzing. Kathy's grin was bright, embarrassed and delighted all at the same time.
Today, she decided quietly in her heart of hearts, was up there with the first time Dan had kissed her and the day her prototype had flown for the first time. As Captain Jones spun her again, standing still with that quiet, proud light in his eyes that she treasured, she thought that maybe it was the best day of her life.
Today was the day she named her aerodyne, and the day she became a full-fledged member of the air force at last.
