Future to Past

{-Chapter Fifteen-}

It was another dreary day in Small Heath, the Shelby men had all gone out to do what they needed to cement the Peaky Blinders standing in the town. Polly had gone to church, the older woman knowing something, something was going to happen, so she left to pray for her family, pray they would be alright, and so that left the children, Ada, and Seraphina inside the Shelby home, or as Seraphina liked to call it. The gangster base.

Yes, she hated it to, she was trying to come up with a better name. But for now... that was the name.

"Okay, the aim of the game is to make sure no one touches the floor. Okay, the floor is lava, it burns." Seraphina explained to the children and Ada. "Now, get high up!" She shouted, the children all scurried finding somewhere to be high, Ada doing the exact same thing. The older girl was enjoying every second of it, never really getting to be a child, and play games.

Finn had chosen to stand on the table, with Katie and Hazel beside him, George and Collin had decided to help each other, both holding onto each other as they stood on the couch. Ada had climbed the back of the sofa, balancing on the back, giggles leaving her lips. Seraphina had managed to climb onto the fireplace, her back flush against the wall. A giant grin on her face.

Unfortunately, it was in that moment that Tommy, John, and Arthur walked back into the house, to see the state they were all in. The children, Ada, and Seraphina looked at them wide eyed. It was then that Finn, Katie, Hazel, George, and Collin shouted at the men. "Quick get to high ground!"

The three men were shocked before getting somewhere high. Ada and Seraphina knew the men thought something bad was on the floor and that was why they were all somewhere high up.

"Why are we standing somewhere high, what's going to hurt us!" Arthur screamed, as he now stood on the small side table, eyes darting around the room. Ada let out a laugh in that moment as she saw that Tommy had climbed the fireplace to try and protect Seraphina, from the mysterious creature that had them all up on top of things. "Oi! Why are you laughing?" Arthur shouted.

"The floor is lava!" Ada and Seraphina shouted, before the two looked at each other and laughed, unfortunately that caused Ada to lose her balance and fall to the floor.

"Ada!" The children and Seraphina shouted, as Ada pretended to burn, before pretending to become a lava monster.

"Oh, no! She's absorbed the lava and become our worst enemy! It's a lava monster! Run!" Seraphina shouted, as she and the children bolted from the room, with Ada chasing them as she roared, and pretending to throw lava balls at them.

The three Shelby men blinked in surprise, it was a game, this whole thing was a fucking game.

And now the men were embarrassed as right before them was Polly Anna Grey, who stared at the men, seeing them stood on objects, "I don't want to know." Polly said as she walked away. The Shelby men got down from their places and patted themselves, trying to pretend that what just happened, never actually happened. Imagine the looks they would have gotten from the people in the streets.

The three men went into the betting den, still hearing the laughter from the children, it put a bright smile on John's face, he adored the sounds, he was still sadly learning everything about his children. Having lost those years with them, and having lost their mother, it was hard. But Seraphina, she made it easier. For Arthur, it was strange, he hadn't heard this sort of laughter inside this house for a long time, their mother usually the cause of the happiness, but it was something he dearly welcomed in their lives.

Tommy, Tommy was smiling, it made him imagine more children, playing with Seraphina, except it was their children, he dreamed of three boys, looking like him but with Seraphina's eyes, and two little girls who looked just like her but his eyes. A dream is all it was but, he quite liked this dream, or maybe it was something he was determined to have, even if he doesn't have that many children, as it was completely up to Seraphina, because it was her having the children not him. He laid his head back as his cigarette laid lazily in his mouth, he should stop these thoughts, but the image of Seraphina pregnant with his child, fuck did it make it hard not to grab her and pull her into his room and show her exactly how good sex could be.

But he wanted her to decide. It's her choice.

Seraphina, and the children, along with Ada laid on their backs in the sitting room, breathing heavily, all exhausted from playing. "You know, tomorrow, the children go back to school." Ada said, causing groans to ricochet around the room, the two older girls giggle at their looks of sadness. The children despised school. "Seraphina, you and I should go and shop, maybe we can find ourselves some cute skirts." Ada stated a grin on her face.

Seraphina felt her smile grow. "Of course, I would love that." She laughed. "Oh, and we could go to the sweet store as well, I'm out of chocolate." She giggled, but a pout was on her lips. She somehow was able to find the spot that Tommy hid her sugary sweets and stole them back. He was still trying to figure out where she hides them now. She never reveals her secrets. Well, some she does, some she doesn't. Not yet at least.

Ada giggled, nodding her head. "I can't wait."

And with those final words, the group were called into the kitchen for dinner. The two girls giggling as they sat down, discussing what they should do.