Fic: The New Addition - Part 2-2
Title: The New Addition - Part 2-2
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Coat, Ianto, Jack, Owen, OC.
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: None.
Warnings: M-Preg.
Summary: Coat’s new, quieter life is about to change yet again.
Word Count: 2955
Written For: backrose_17’s prompt ‘Jack's Coat has seen him through a lot of Christmases, but his favourite is this one with the welcome of the first Harkness-Jones into the family’, at torchwood_fest 2021.
Beta: My lovely friend milady_dragon. Thanks so much!
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood or the characters; they belong to the BBC and each other.
Part 1
Christmas was rapidly approaching, now less than a month away, and Coat watched on from the sofa the day Ianto set up a tall tree in one corner of the big living room. It wasn’t a real tree, it came out of a box and was made of plastic, but Coat thought it looked quite realistic if you ignored the fact that it was in pieces that had to be fitted together.
Once it was built, Ianto and Jack decorated it with sparkly baubles, strings of tiny lights, and long strands of twinkly tinsel, Ianto taking care of the bottom branches while Jack decorated the top. That struck Coat as a sensible division of labour since if Jack got down on the floor it seemed unlikely that he’d be able to get up again without help. If anything, his swollen stomach was bigger than ever, and Coat thought it a miracle he hadn’t burst yet because he certainly looked like he might. It had seen what happened to balloons if they were inflated too much, and Jack bore an alarming resemblance to a balloon; Coat didn’t want its Captain to go bang.
Neither Jack nor Ianto appeared too worried about Jack’s continuing inflation, so Coat tried not to worry about it either. If there were something seriously wrong then surely Owen would be here, prodding and poking at Jack to determine what the problem was and how to treat it. Since the grumpy medic was not present, that must mean that however odd Jack looked, the humans didn’t consider his condition a problem that needed to be fixed. Perhaps they were simply waiting for him to deflate naturally. Coat decided it could live with that as long as it didn’t include any exploding. Explosions were messy.
One afternoon a few days after the tree decorating, while Ianto was at the Hub, Jack was relaxing on the sofa again with Coat draped comfortingly over him. The two of them were listening to music and watching the way the winter sunlight through the French doors made the tree’s baubles and tinsel sparkle. They really were very pretty.
Beneath the tree was an array of colourful packages tied with ribbon, and Coat had seen such things often enough over the years to know they were Christmas presents, things humans always gave to each other around this time of year. It also knew they had to remain wrapped until one particular day, although it didn’t know why. Jack had pouted when Ianto had told him not to touch them, the Captain really wanted to know what was inside them, and Coat was curious too, but coats clearly had a lot more patience than humans did, perhaps because coats spent so much time hanging around waiting to be needed.
Today Jack was fidgeting even more than usual, and Coat couldn’t be sure whether it was because he was itching to unwrap the gifts or because he was having difficulty finding a comfortable position to rest in. The bulge was moving a lot too, almost as if there were something inside Jack and it was trying to get out. With a groan, Jack shifted again, then winced. Suddenly he stilled and placed both hands on the huge mound, drawing in his breath sharply.
“Oh!”
If it could have, Coat would have asked what was wrong, because that last twitch of the bulge had been different from anything it had experienced before, sort of like a rippling motion. Nothing else happened though, and for a while Jack relaxed. Minutes ticked past, and then the bulge repeated that strange rippling, making Jack gasp again. This time he sat up awkwardly, reaching for his phone on the end table and dialling it with trembling hands.
“Ianto?” he said as soon as someone answered. “Get Owen and get over here as fast as you can! I think it’s time!” Hanging up the phone and setting it aside once more, Jack placed his hands on his stomach. “Three weeks early, so impatient!” he whispered. “Guess you wanted to be here for Christmas.”
Coat was puzzled; who was Jack talking to?
Gently Jack moved Coat aside, laying it on the sofa, then struggled awkwardly to his feet. It took him several minutes because he had to keep stopping, groaning with pain, but at last he was upright. Walking slowly and carefully, he made his way across the lounge and into a room that Coat had never been in. He left the door open, but from where Coat was lying it couldn’t perceive what was going on in there.
Less than five minutes later the apartment door burst open, and Ianto charged in with Owen right on his heels, carrying his medical bag. They left the front door standing wide open and if it could have, Coat would have told them they should close it, but somehow it doubted they would have paid any attention; they were in far too much of a hurry.
“Jack! Where are you?” Ianto yelled.
“In here!” Jack replied, sounding strained, and following the Captain’s voice Owen and Ianto bolted across the apartment and into the room, shutting the door behind them.
‘Oh well,’ thought Coat. ‘I suppose I’d better just stay here and keep an eye on things, make sure nobody comes into the apartment who shouldn’t be here. I’m the Guard Coat now. Very important job.’ It did wish it knew what was going on inside that room though. It was frustrating being on the outside without even the opportunity to look in; it could only hope its Captain was alright.
The noises filtering out through the closed door were somewhat worrying; Jack sounded as if he was in pain, Ianto seemed to be trying to soothe him, and as for Owen… Well, one moment he was being calm and in control, the next he was panicking, then calm again, back and forth like he couldn’t make up his mind.
After what seemed like a very long time but really couldn’t have been, there came a new sound, a sort of wailing, but Coat was sure it didn’t come from Jack, Ianto, or Owen; it was too high pitched.
Then Coat heard Ianto’s voice: “He’s perfect!”
Coat gave a slight shrug where it lay on the sofa cushions. Ianto had to mean Jack, which made sense; everyone knew the Captain was perfect. He might be a bit bulgy at present, but he was still Jack, there was just more of him than usual. Perfection was more than skin deep.
Time continued to pass with nothing else happening, until the door suddenly opened, and Owen came out. He looked tired, a bit shell-shocked, but he was smiling. “You two better be more careful in future,” he called back over his shoulder, “because I am NEVER doing that again.”
“You say that now,” Ianto smirked, coming into the open doorway, “but we all know you would if we ever needed you to. Thanks, Owen.”
“Yeah, yeah, just doing my job. Go back to your family; I’ll let myself out.” Medical bag over his shoulder and a plastic carrier bag in one hand, Owen left, this time shutting the front door behind him. Coat relaxed a bit now it didn’t need to be on guard against the possibility of intruders.
Ianto had gone back into the room, only to come out again with a bundle of sheets and towels, which he took to the laundry room. Coat thought it could detect traces of blood on them, which immediately set it worrying again. Had Jack burst after all? If he hadn’t, then where had the blood come from? Neither Ianto nor Owen had shown any sign of injury, so any blood had to be Jack’s.
Returning from putting the laundry on, Ianto bustled back into the room, stayed there for a few minutes then came out again, this time making for the kitchen where he put the kettle on for tea, piled some of Jack’s favourite chocolate biscuits onto a plate, and then mixed something in a peculiar receptacle that he put in the microwave to warm. As soon as the tea was made and the contents of the other thing heated sufficiently, which Ianto checked by dripping some on his hand, he loaded everything onto a tray and vanished into the room again, leaving the door ajar.
Coat twitched, wishing it could creep across the floor and peek through the crack, just to check on Jack; as a hero coat it should probably be above such curiosity, but nobody was perfect, with the possible exception of the Captain. Besides, anything that concerned its owner automatically concerned Coat; they were a team, and Jack’s welfare was of paramount importance. Unable to move by itself, however, all Coat could do was lay on the sofa longing to know what was happening. Curiosity might well kill the cat, but thankfully coats were made of sterner stuff, otherwise it might have been in big trouble.
Time passed, the sun slipped below the horizon and the living room grew steadily darker. Coat had no fear of the dark, so the loss of light didn’t bother it, but it was starting to feel left out again. It could hear quiet murmurs coming from the adjoining room, where a light was now shining, but wasn’t able to make out what was being said. Eventually Ianto came out again carrying the tea tray back to the kitchen. Putting it down on the worktop, he turned on a few lights before putting the dirty dishes in the dishwasher. Coat noticed all of the biscuits had gone, which had to mean Jack was alright; he wouldn’t be hungry otherwise. That was reassuring.
Coat was so intent on watching Ianto in the kitchen, fixing himself and the Captain something more substantial than chocolate biscuits to eat, that he didn’t at first register that the door to the side room had opened again and someone had come out. Belatedly detecting movement, Coat shifted its attention and stiffened with surprise; it was Jack, but not the lumpy, bulgy Jack of recent weeks. Instead he looked as trim as he ever had, like he’d never swelled up at all. How extraordinary!
Perhaps he really had burst, or perhaps Owen had deflated him somehow. Maybe he’d even died and come back, although Coat usually felt it deep in its fibres when that happened, and it hadn’t been aware of any such sensation while Jack, Ianto, and Owen were shut away in that room. Nevertheless, Jack was back to his normal size and shape, although he was carrying a mysterious bundle in his arms. Making his way over to the sofa he sat beside Coat, having no trouble at all this time. It was as if the previous months had just been some kind of bizarre dream, except that it couldn’t be. Coat didn’t dream as such, since it didn’t sleep.
“Well, I think it’s about time you two were properly introduced,” Jack said with a smile, running one hand lightly over Coat’s fabric. “You’ve had to put up with a lot because of this little one.” Shifting position, he carefully laid his blanket-wrapped burden amid Coat’s folds. “There you go; meet the new addition to the family.”
Coat was stunned; the bundle was a tiny human, all wrinkled and reddish but with a mop of dark hair that looked very much like Jack’s. It was a miniature version of the Captain! But where had it come from? Had Owen brought it with him? Stiffening its sleeve fractionally to keep the little human safe and secure, Coat drank in everything about the newcomer, feeling the tiny body squirm in an oddly familiar way.
Of course! Suddenly everything made sense! This must be what had been inside Jack, moving around and making him swell up! Clearly Owen had been called to take it out, probably because it was getting too big to fit even despite Jack expanding so much to accommodate it. Coat’s Captain had grown a small human inside himself, how peculiar! It wondered if that was how all new humans were made; Coat supposed they had to come from somewhere.
Ianto came out of the kitchen and wandered over to join them, sitting carefully on the sofa beside Coat and the miniature Captain. “Dinner will be ready in about twenty minutes. So, how are the introductions going?”
“Just fine, of course, why wouldn’t they be?” Jack smiled at Ianto. “Coat likes the baby, and I’m sure our son will love Coat once they get to know each other. He’s just had a very busy day so he’s a little too sleepy right now.”
“Not to mention too young,” Ianto replied. “You just wait until he starts using Coat as a teething ring, chewing on its lapels and slobbering all over it.”
‘Oh dear,’ thought Coat. ‘Is that likely?’ Knowing its Captain’s manners, it probably was. Well, Coat put up with Jack dripping food down it; surely the new little human couldn’t be any worse than that.
Ianto thoughtfully picked up the small person, sparing Coat any possibility of being chewed. “Come to Taddy, baby boy.” The baby made a quiet gurgling sound. If Coat could have smiled, it would have. “We still haven’t decided on a name for him.”
“I’ve been thinking about that. How about James? I know it’s not very Welsh, but…”
“He doesn’t have to have a Welsh name, Jack,” Ianto chuckled. “You don’t.”
“I wasn’t born in Cardiff,” Jack pointed out.
“True. James Harkness-Jones; it’s a strong name, has a good ring to it.”
“Maybe he could have a Welsh middle name. Dafydd, or Emrys, or Gwyn, something like that,” Jack suggested.
“Ifan. James Ifan Harkness Jones. What do you think?”
Jack smiled. “I like it.”
Coat liked it too; now the new human had a name: James. ‘I will help to protect you, James,’ Coat vowed. ‘You’ll need a lot of protecting because you’re so little. You don’t look like you’ll be very good at taking care of yourself.’
Not long ago, Coat had thought it was being discarded, no longer wanted, but now it knew it would be needed more than ever, not only making its Captain look suitably heroic, but also helping to watch over the family’s newest member.
The next week or so passed quickly, and of course James was Jack and Ianto’s top priority; Coat had been right, the new little person needed everything doing for him. He slept a lot, but woke up crying every few hours, during the night as well as in the daytime. Every time the baby cried one or both of his parents would come running, no matter what they’d been doing. They’d feed him, clean him, cuddle him, walk back and forth rocking him, whatever it took to make him fall asleep again, or at least stop making so much noise. For something so tiny he was certainly loud. Coat observed everything, taking it all in, and before any of them knew it Christmas Day had arrived.
The festive season was extra special that year, and Coat got to join in the celebrations, feeling more a part of the family than it ever had before. It was right there on the sofa when all the brightly wrapped gifts were opened; most were for James, who didn’t seem particularly interested in any of them, but Jack and Ianto had gifts for each other too, and there was even something for Coat; a brand-new brush and a padded wooden hanger.
Coat hung over the back of a vacant chair during Christmas dinner, keeping watch over James as he snoozed in his crib nearby, while Jack and Ianto ate. After the dishes were all cleared away, it lay on the sofa covering Jack and Ianto’s legs while they tried to take a badly needed nap. With James waking them several times every night they’d been getting precious little sleep, and they both looked so tired that Coat wished it could do more to help them. Unfortunately, hero Coats weren’t really designed to be nannies.
The television was on in the background, and Coat was surprised to see a familiar face appear on the screen and hear an equally familiar voice. It fluffed its fibres slightly as it listened to the Queen. As Jack usually wore Coat when he went to the palace, it had met Her Majesty on quite a few occasions and had always liked her; now she was talking about the importance of family all year round and not just at Christmastime. The message struck a chord with Coat. Yes, nothing except protecting Cardiff and the rest of the earth could possibly be more important than family, and here it lay, providing comfort for its human family. That was exactly as it should be.
This was surely only the first of Coat’s family Christmases; it would be needed in future to help look after James when his parents were busy, and who knew, perhaps Jack would grow another small human inside him one day. Coat remembered seeing people with several little ones when it was out and about with Jack, so it must be possible. At least if its Captain ever did start swelling up again Coat would know what was happening and not be so worried.
Snuggling itself more warmly around its Captain and his Ianto, Coat felt at peace; nothing could be more perfect than this, and no matter how many more Christmases it might be privileged to be a part of, this one would always be a special memory, preserved deep in its fibres. It was the luckiest Coat in the world!
The End
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Coat, Ianto, Jack, Owen, OC.
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: None.
Warnings: M-Preg.
Summary: Coat’s new, quieter life is about to change yet again.
Word Count: 2955
Written For: backrose_17’s prompt ‘Jack's Coat has seen him through a lot of Christmases, but his favourite is this one with the welcome of the first Harkness-Jones into the family’, at torchwood_fest 2021.
Beta: My lovely friend milady_dragon. Thanks so much!
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood or the characters; they belong to the BBC and each other.
Part 1
Christmas was rapidly approaching, now less than a month away, and Coat watched on from the sofa the day Ianto set up a tall tree in one corner of the big living room. It wasn’t a real tree, it came out of a box and was made of plastic, but Coat thought it looked quite realistic if you ignored the fact that it was in pieces that had to be fitted together.
Once it was built, Ianto and Jack decorated it with sparkly baubles, strings of tiny lights, and long strands of twinkly tinsel, Ianto taking care of the bottom branches while Jack decorated the top. That struck Coat as a sensible division of labour since if Jack got down on the floor it seemed unlikely that he’d be able to get up again without help. If anything, his swollen stomach was bigger than ever, and Coat thought it a miracle he hadn’t burst yet because he certainly looked like he might. It had seen what happened to balloons if they were inflated too much, and Jack bore an alarming resemblance to a balloon; Coat didn’t want its Captain to go bang.
Neither Jack nor Ianto appeared too worried about Jack’s continuing inflation, so Coat tried not to worry about it either. If there were something seriously wrong then surely Owen would be here, prodding and poking at Jack to determine what the problem was and how to treat it. Since the grumpy medic was not present, that must mean that however odd Jack looked, the humans didn’t consider his condition a problem that needed to be fixed. Perhaps they were simply waiting for him to deflate naturally. Coat decided it could live with that as long as it didn’t include any exploding. Explosions were messy.
One afternoon a few days after the tree decorating, while Ianto was at the Hub, Jack was relaxing on the sofa again with Coat draped comfortingly over him. The two of them were listening to music and watching the way the winter sunlight through the French doors made the tree’s baubles and tinsel sparkle. They really were very pretty.
Beneath the tree was an array of colourful packages tied with ribbon, and Coat had seen such things often enough over the years to know they were Christmas presents, things humans always gave to each other around this time of year. It also knew they had to remain wrapped until one particular day, although it didn’t know why. Jack had pouted when Ianto had told him not to touch them, the Captain really wanted to know what was inside them, and Coat was curious too, but coats clearly had a lot more patience than humans did, perhaps because coats spent so much time hanging around waiting to be needed.
Today Jack was fidgeting even more than usual, and Coat couldn’t be sure whether it was because he was itching to unwrap the gifts or because he was having difficulty finding a comfortable position to rest in. The bulge was moving a lot too, almost as if there were something inside Jack and it was trying to get out. With a groan, Jack shifted again, then winced. Suddenly he stilled and placed both hands on the huge mound, drawing in his breath sharply.
“Oh!”
If it could have, Coat would have asked what was wrong, because that last twitch of the bulge had been different from anything it had experienced before, sort of like a rippling motion. Nothing else happened though, and for a while Jack relaxed. Minutes ticked past, and then the bulge repeated that strange rippling, making Jack gasp again. This time he sat up awkwardly, reaching for his phone on the end table and dialling it with trembling hands.
“Ianto?” he said as soon as someone answered. “Get Owen and get over here as fast as you can! I think it’s time!” Hanging up the phone and setting it aside once more, Jack placed his hands on his stomach. “Three weeks early, so impatient!” he whispered. “Guess you wanted to be here for Christmas.”
Coat was puzzled; who was Jack talking to?
Gently Jack moved Coat aside, laying it on the sofa, then struggled awkwardly to his feet. It took him several minutes because he had to keep stopping, groaning with pain, but at last he was upright. Walking slowly and carefully, he made his way across the lounge and into a room that Coat had never been in. He left the door open, but from where Coat was lying it couldn’t perceive what was going on in there.
Less than five minutes later the apartment door burst open, and Ianto charged in with Owen right on his heels, carrying his medical bag. They left the front door standing wide open and if it could have, Coat would have told them they should close it, but somehow it doubted they would have paid any attention; they were in far too much of a hurry.
“Jack! Where are you?” Ianto yelled.
“In here!” Jack replied, sounding strained, and following the Captain’s voice Owen and Ianto bolted across the apartment and into the room, shutting the door behind them.
‘Oh well,’ thought Coat. ‘I suppose I’d better just stay here and keep an eye on things, make sure nobody comes into the apartment who shouldn’t be here. I’m the Guard Coat now. Very important job.’ It did wish it knew what was going on inside that room though. It was frustrating being on the outside without even the opportunity to look in; it could only hope its Captain was alright.
The noises filtering out through the closed door were somewhat worrying; Jack sounded as if he was in pain, Ianto seemed to be trying to soothe him, and as for Owen… Well, one moment he was being calm and in control, the next he was panicking, then calm again, back and forth like he couldn’t make up his mind.
After what seemed like a very long time but really couldn’t have been, there came a new sound, a sort of wailing, but Coat was sure it didn’t come from Jack, Ianto, or Owen; it was too high pitched.
Then Coat heard Ianto’s voice: “He’s perfect!”
Coat gave a slight shrug where it lay on the sofa cushions. Ianto had to mean Jack, which made sense; everyone knew the Captain was perfect. He might be a bit bulgy at present, but he was still Jack, there was just more of him than usual. Perfection was more than skin deep.
Time continued to pass with nothing else happening, until the door suddenly opened, and Owen came out. He looked tired, a bit shell-shocked, but he was smiling. “You two better be more careful in future,” he called back over his shoulder, “because I am NEVER doing that again.”
“You say that now,” Ianto smirked, coming into the open doorway, “but we all know you would if we ever needed you to. Thanks, Owen.”
“Yeah, yeah, just doing my job. Go back to your family; I’ll let myself out.” Medical bag over his shoulder and a plastic carrier bag in one hand, Owen left, this time shutting the front door behind him. Coat relaxed a bit now it didn’t need to be on guard against the possibility of intruders.
Ianto had gone back into the room, only to come out again with a bundle of sheets and towels, which he took to the laundry room. Coat thought it could detect traces of blood on them, which immediately set it worrying again. Had Jack burst after all? If he hadn’t, then where had the blood come from? Neither Ianto nor Owen had shown any sign of injury, so any blood had to be Jack’s.
Returning from putting the laundry on, Ianto bustled back into the room, stayed there for a few minutes then came out again, this time making for the kitchen where he put the kettle on for tea, piled some of Jack’s favourite chocolate biscuits onto a plate, and then mixed something in a peculiar receptacle that he put in the microwave to warm. As soon as the tea was made and the contents of the other thing heated sufficiently, which Ianto checked by dripping some on his hand, he loaded everything onto a tray and vanished into the room again, leaving the door ajar.
Coat twitched, wishing it could creep across the floor and peek through the crack, just to check on Jack; as a hero coat it should probably be above such curiosity, but nobody was perfect, with the possible exception of the Captain. Besides, anything that concerned its owner automatically concerned Coat; they were a team, and Jack’s welfare was of paramount importance. Unable to move by itself, however, all Coat could do was lay on the sofa longing to know what was happening. Curiosity might well kill the cat, but thankfully coats were made of sterner stuff, otherwise it might have been in big trouble.
Time passed, the sun slipped below the horizon and the living room grew steadily darker. Coat had no fear of the dark, so the loss of light didn’t bother it, but it was starting to feel left out again. It could hear quiet murmurs coming from the adjoining room, where a light was now shining, but wasn’t able to make out what was being said. Eventually Ianto came out again carrying the tea tray back to the kitchen. Putting it down on the worktop, he turned on a few lights before putting the dirty dishes in the dishwasher. Coat noticed all of the biscuits had gone, which had to mean Jack was alright; he wouldn’t be hungry otherwise. That was reassuring.
Coat was so intent on watching Ianto in the kitchen, fixing himself and the Captain something more substantial than chocolate biscuits to eat, that he didn’t at first register that the door to the side room had opened again and someone had come out. Belatedly detecting movement, Coat shifted its attention and stiffened with surprise; it was Jack, but not the lumpy, bulgy Jack of recent weeks. Instead he looked as trim as he ever had, like he’d never swelled up at all. How extraordinary!
Perhaps he really had burst, or perhaps Owen had deflated him somehow. Maybe he’d even died and come back, although Coat usually felt it deep in its fibres when that happened, and it hadn’t been aware of any such sensation while Jack, Ianto, and Owen were shut away in that room. Nevertheless, Jack was back to his normal size and shape, although he was carrying a mysterious bundle in his arms. Making his way over to the sofa he sat beside Coat, having no trouble at all this time. It was as if the previous months had just been some kind of bizarre dream, except that it couldn’t be. Coat didn’t dream as such, since it didn’t sleep.
“Well, I think it’s about time you two were properly introduced,” Jack said with a smile, running one hand lightly over Coat’s fabric. “You’ve had to put up with a lot because of this little one.” Shifting position, he carefully laid his blanket-wrapped burden amid Coat’s folds. “There you go; meet the new addition to the family.”
Coat was stunned; the bundle was a tiny human, all wrinkled and reddish but with a mop of dark hair that looked very much like Jack’s. It was a miniature version of the Captain! But where had it come from? Had Owen brought it with him? Stiffening its sleeve fractionally to keep the little human safe and secure, Coat drank in everything about the newcomer, feeling the tiny body squirm in an oddly familiar way.
Of course! Suddenly everything made sense! This must be what had been inside Jack, moving around and making him swell up! Clearly Owen had been called to take it out, probably because it was getting too big to fit even despite Jack expanding so much to accommodate it. Coat’s Captain had grown a small human inside himself, how peculiar! It wondered if that was how all new humans were made; Coat supposed they had to come from somewhere.
Ianto came out of the kitchen and wandered over to join them, sitting carefully on the sofa beside Coat and the miniature Captain. “Dinner will be ready in about twenty minutes. So, how are the introductions going?”
“Just fine, of course, why wouldn’t they be?” Jack smiled at Ianto. “Coat likes the baby, and I’m sure our son will love Coat once they get to know each other. He’s just had a very busy day so he’s a little too sleepy right now.”
“Not to mention too young,” Ianto replied. “You just wait until he starts using Coat as a teething ring, chewing on its lapels and slobbering all over it.”
‘Oh dear,’ thought Coat. ‘Is that likely?’ Knowing its Captain’s manners, it probably was. Well, Coat put up with Jack dripping food down it; surely the new little human couldn’t be any worse than that.
Ianto thoughtfully picked up the small person, sparing Coat any possibility of being chewed. “Come to Taddy, baby boy.” The baby made a quiet gurgling sound. If Coat could have smiled, it would have. “We still haven’t decided on a name for him.”
“I’ve been thinking about that. How about James? I know it’s not very Welsh, but…”
“He doesn’t have to have a Welsh name, Jack,” Ianto chuckled. “You don’t.”
“I wasn’t born in Cardiff,” Jack pointed out.
“True. James Harkness-Jones; it’s a strong name, has a good ring to it.”
“Maybe he could have a Welsh middle name. Dafydd, or Emrys, or Gwyn, something like that,” Jack suggested.
“Ifan. James Ifan Harkness Jones. What do you think?”
Jack smiled. “I like it.”
Coat liked it too; now the new human had a name: James. ‘I will help to protect you, James,’ Coat vowed. ‘You’ll need a lot of protecting because you’re so little. You don’t look like you’ll be very good at taking care of yourself.’
Not long ago, Coat had thought it was being discarded, no longer wanted, but now it knew it would be needed more than ever, not only making its Captain look suitably heroic, but also helping to watch over the family’s newest member.
The next week or so passed quickly, and of course James was Jack and Ianto’s top priority; Coat had been right, the new little person needed everything doing for him. He slept a lot, but woke up crying every few hours, during the night as well as in the daytime. Every time the baby cried one or both of his parents would come running, no matter what they’d been doing. They’d feed him, clean him, cuddle him, walk back and forth rocking him, whatever it took to make him fall asleep again, or at least stop making so much noise. For something so tiny he was certainly loud. Coat observed everything, taking it all in, and before any of them knew it Christmas Day had arrived.
The festive season was extra special that year, and Coat got to join in the celebrations, feeling more a part of the family than it ever had before. It was right there on the sofa when all the brightly wrapped gifts were opened; most were for James, who didn’t seem particularly interested in any of them, but Jack and Ianto had gifts for each other too, and there was even something for Coat; a brand-new brush and a padded wooden hanger.
Coat hung over the back of a vacant chair during Christmas dinner, keeping watch over James as he snoozed in his crib nearby, while Jack and Ianto ate. After the dishes were all cleared away, it lay on the sofa covering Jack and Ianto’s legs while they tried to take a badly needed nap. With James waking them several times every night they’d been getting precious little sleep, and they both looked so tired that Coat wished it could do more to help them. Unfortunately, hero Coats weren’t really designed to be nannies.
The television was on in the background, and Coat was surprised to see a familiar face appear on the screen and hear an equally familiar voice. It fluffed its fibres slightly as it listened to the Queen. As Jack usually wore Coat when he went to the palace, it had met Her Majesty on quite a few occasions and had always liked her; now she was talking about the importance of family all year round and not just at Christmastime. The message struck a chord with Coat. Yes, nothing except protecting Cardiff and the rest of the earth could possibly be more important than family, and here it lay, providing comfort for its human family. That was exactly as it should be.
This was surely only the first of Coat’s family Christmases; it would be needed in future to help look after James when his parents were busy, and who knew, perhaps Jack would grow another small human inside him one day. Coat remembered seeing people with several little ones when it was out and about with Jack, so it must be possible. At least if its Captain ever did start swelling up again Coat would know what was happening and not be so worried.
Snuggling itself more warmly around its Captain and his Ianto, Coat felt at peace; nothing could be more perfect than this, and no matter how many more Christmases it might be privileged to be a part of, this one would always be a special memory, preserved deep in its fibres. It was the luckiest Coat in the world!
The End