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The Best Friends You'll Ever Have | 9: Daddy's Little Girl
Chapter Title: 9 | Daddy's Little Girl
Prompt: #040 – Claire Pike
Universe: Post-canon
Genre: Family
Rating: K+
Warning: None
Word Count: 1,281
Summary: As she prepares to leave the only home she’s ever known, Claire Pike searches for the perfect family memento.
Links: FF.net | LJ | DW | AO3
This piece was a little quick, out-of-nowhere story that popped into my head and wouldn't quite let me go until it was written, LOL. I like stories like that, even if I feel intimidated by their premises.
This story was inspired by
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ozqueen’s Money, and I am in hopes that it pays homage to it =) I just loved the scene at the end, where John Pike fulfills his promise to his youngest daughter by buying her that coveted Skipper doll, that I knew I wanted to do something with it :) I tried to think of a scenario when that doll could come into play again, and after cycling through several different ideas, I settled on this one ~ Claire leaving home for the first time when she goes off to college.It seems simple enough, no? (And I was hoping to come in under 1000 words, but alas - I think I'm doomed in that department, LOL.) But - the Pikes, man, the Pikes! I feel so incredibly intimidated writing them, especially after the amazing parent!fic that
ozqueen has gifted us with, and the great family-centric stuff from the likes of miss_slipslop and lucida. I was going up against the greats here, people who knew these characters inside and out, so basically, my mission was to not make a fool of myself, LOL :PI think I did okay here. While reading up on Claire from the Complete Guide, I had a little flash of inspiration for where I saw her in thirteen years, on the brink of adulthood. She strikes me as somewhat whimsical, the sort that would never outgrow her silly stage completely. Here's the little character sketch I wrote out after copying her entry from the Complete Guide:
"Grown up" Claire - scattered, forgetful, enthusiastic, good-natured, no longer so silly but still full of energy, likes to dye her hair wacky colors (her form of rebellion); has lots of friends, two BFFs that she's going to college with (Suzi Barrett, Patsy Kuhn)
I like the idea of her always being a little wild, but never malicious - and John and Dee are the sorts of parents who'd probably see hair dying as a downright normal right of teen passage, LOL :P By the time they have to go through this with Claire, they've had plenty of experience with every other form of rebellion. In some ways, I think that's the Claire's benefit - she learns from her siblings' experiences just as much from her own, and that would help round her character a little bit :)
Unfortunately, it seems there are only two other kids her age in the Stoneybrook universe - Suzi and Patsy! LOL wow. I'm always amazed when I start looking for kids who are the same age. Some of them really got shortchanged! :P And for a bunch of thirteen-year-old baby-sitters, they sure do sit for a bunch of 8- and 9-year-olds o.O Hmm. Weird.
Anyway! So thinking about Claire was fun...but I didn't want to try to map out futures for all of the Pike kids for a simple little introspective piece, so I did the next best thing - I was vague :P LOL. But, what are the odds that eight kids will all go to college? Surely one of them is going to join the military (maybe Nicky?), and a couple might try to strike out on their own, eschewing further formal education. *shrug* I dunno. What's important is that they're all gone - none of them are living at home anymore, which is quite an accomplishment, LOL. I tried to touch a little bit on Claire's adjustment from being the youngest to being the only child left. It's a strange transition, to feel like you finally have "all" of your parents' attention after sharing it with siblings all your life - and as much as she loves it, she misses her brothers and sisters. Hence her melancholy as she muses about them here.
But, in the end, she'll always be her father's little girl =) This story was partly inspired by the song "Daddy's Girl" from the BSC movie soundtrack. Unfortunately, it's not up on YouTube, but the relevant lyric is this:
I wanna be daddy's girl when everything's all right
Throw me in the air / hold me tight
When I grow up, I'll be just like you
Daddy's little girl / I wanna be daddy's little girl
Yes, I'm daddy's little girl / through and through
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By the time they have to go through this with Claire, they've had plenty of experience with every other form of rebellion.
Here I am, imagining which sibling did what... and who got into trouble the most... and what made John and Dee the angriest...
IDEK. I am fascinated with the Pikes. I am totally going to overanalyze this little detail.
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Be my guest, LOL! =) You'd know better than I who got into what and who has the ability to get under their parents' skin... :) I feel like I'm out of my league when it comes to the Pikes.
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