Ficlet: Local Style
Title: Local Style
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ianto, Jack.
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: Sometimes it’s best to blend in with the locals.
Word Count: 500
Written For: Prompt 288: Cloak at anythingdrabble.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters.
A/N: Set in my Through Time and Space ‘Verse.
“Leave your coat, Jack.” Ianto stopped his lover before he could don the familiar garment.
“What? Why?” Jack clutched his coat to him. He’d been a bit clingy towards it ever since retrieving it from stasis storage on Paramian, where he’d put it, along with all his other valuables, for safekeeping.
“You won’t need it, you’d stick out like a sore thumb,” Ianto explained patiently. “Besides, it might get damaged.”
“Damaged?” Jack clutched the coat tighter still. Even though it wasn’t the original, it still meant a great deal to him, if only because it was the replacement Ianto had somehow acquired for him while they were on the run from the black ops team sent to kill them.
“We don’t know what we might have to do, and some things are too important to be worth risking. Besides, if we want to blend in, we should dress as the locals do. When in Rome, and all that. People from hundreds of worlds come here to take in the sights, but they all adopt variations on the local version of outerwear. Practical, weatherproof, and quite stylish. Here’s yours.” Ianto held out a bundle of fabric in a similar colour to Jack’s greatcoat, but with a smooth, woven texture.
Replacing his coat on its hanger, Jack accepted what Ianto was offering, letting it unfold in his hands. “A cloak?”
“Yep!” Ianto shook his own out, dark charcoal grey with a rich burgundy lining. He swirled it out and around himself, letting it settle on his shoulders before fastening a clasp at his throat. The bottom edge was weighted so that it hung neatly, reaching to his ankles.
Jack grinned. “Makes you look like a vampire. Just so you know, you can suck my… blood, or anything else, anytime.”
Ianto rolled his eyes. “Business before pleasure, Jack.”
“You never call me ‘Sir’ anymore.”
“I don’t work for you anymore. Now come on, finishing getting dressed and let’s get going, before someone else stumbles across what we’re looking for.”
Grumbling under his breath, Jack tried to emulate Ianto, swirling his blue-grey cloak with its navy lining up and around his shoulders to cover the dark blue tunic and trousers he was wearing. The cloak seemed unwilling to cooperate, however, twisting and getting bunched up on his shoulder. Ianto had to rescue him, straightening it out.
“How come yours behaves and mine doesn’t?”
Ianto smirked. “Practice. I’ve been here before.”
“Cheat.” Jack pouted.
“Takes one to know one.” Ianto stepped back, studying Jack critically. “You’ll do. Just don’t attempt any fancy flounces. You might knock someone out with the hem. Seriously, I’ve seen it happen.”
“Why’re we even here? We save kidnap victims, free slaves, retrieve stolen valuables, rescue settlements from invaders, all the heroic stuff. We’re not in the lost pet business.”
“We are now. Do you want to explain to those kids that their pet isn’t important enough for us to find?”
Jack sighed. “No. Fine, let’s go find their lost Zurm.”
The End
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ianto, Jack.
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: Sometimes it’s best to blend in with the locals.
Word Count: 500
Written For: Prompt 288: Cloak at anythingdrabble.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters.
A/N: Set in my Through Time and Space ‘Verse.
“Leave your coat, Jack.” Ianto stopped his lover before he could don the familiar garment.
“What? Why?” Jack clutched his coat to him. He’d been a bit clingy towards it ever since retrieving it from stasis storage on Paramian, where he’d put it, along with all his other valuables, for safekeeping.
“You won’t need it, you’d stick out like a sore thumb,” Ianto explained patiently. “Besides, it might get damaged.”
“Damaged?” Jack clutched the coat tighter still. Even though it wasn’t the original, it still meant a great deal to him, if only because it was the replacement Ianto had somehow acquired for him while they were on the run from the black ops team sent to kill them.
“We don’t know what we might have to do, and some things are too important to be worth risking. Besides, if we want to blend in, we should dress as the locals do. When in Rome, and all that. People from hundreds of worlds come here to take in the sights, but they all adopt variations on the local version of outerwear. Practical, weatherproof, and quite stylish. Here’s yours.” Ianto held out a bundle of fabric in a similar colour to Jack’s greatcoat, but with a smooth, woven texture.
Replacing his coat on its hanger, Jack accepted what Ianto was offering, letting it unfold in his hands. “A cloak?”
“Yep!” Ianto shook his own out, dark charcoal grey with a rich burgundy lining. He swirled it out and around himself, letting it settle on his shoulders before fastening a clasp at his throat. The bottom edge was weighted so that it hung neatly, reaching to his ankles.
Jack grinned. “Makes you look like a vampire. Just so you know, you can suck my… blood, or anything else, anytime.”
Ianto rolled his eyes. “Business before pleasure, Jack.”
“You never call me ‘Sir’ anymore.”
“I don’t work for you anymore. Now come on, finishing getting dressed and let’s get going, before someone else stumbles across what we’re looking for.”
Grumbling under his breath, Jack tried to emulate Ianto, swirling his blue-grey cloak with its navy lining up and around his shoulders to cover the dark blue tunic and trousers he was wearing. The cloak seemed unwilling to cooperate, however, twisting and getting bunched up on his shoulder. Ianto had to rescue him, straightening it out.
“How come yours behaves and mine doesn’t?”
Ianto smirked. “Practice. I’ve been here before.”
“Cheat.” Jack pouted.
“Takes one to know one.” Ianto stepped back, studying Jack critically. “You’ll do. Just don’t attempt any fancy flounces. You might knock someone out with the hem. Seriously, I’ve seen it happen.”
“Why’re we even here? We save kidnap victims, free slaves, retrieve stolen valuables, rescue settlements from invaders, all the heroic stuff. We’re not in the lost pet business.”
“We are now. Do you want to explain to those kids that their pet isn’t important enough for us to find?”
Jack sighed. “No. Fine, let’s go find their lost Zurm.”
The End