Peaky Blinders One Shots

John X Reader: Trick Or Treat (Modern!AU)

"Katie, come on! It's time to go!"

"I'm coming!" The seven year old cries as she tries once again to tie up the string on the back of her witch costume. You can see she is getting upset at holding everyone back from leaving the house and getting sweets from the neighbours, so you step behind her and tie it for her. Once done, you grab her orange plastic pumpkin bucket from the counter and hand it to her.

"Thank you." She whispers shyly, before scurrying off to her three brothers waiting impatiently at the front door. You follow her at a slower pace and reach the siblings just as John comes out of the loo. At the sight of the five of you waiting for him he smiles to himself and grabs the house key. He doesn't bother with the car keys because the estate they live has enough houses to fill two buckets for each of his children, so there's no need to leave Small Heath.

The six of you shuffle out the door, the children running wild before their dad even shuts the door behind him.

"Kids, calm down," John yells as they take off. "It's still early and there's plenty of houses to go to. Why rush?"

His words fall on deaf ears, as they are already running to the third house by the time he locks the door and the two of you have caught up with them. John's oldest child, ten year old James, knocks on the door covered in fake cobwebs, then steps back to stand beside his younger siblings. The door is barely open when the children shout "trick or treat!" in unison, then start chanting a little rhyme to entertain the elderly woman who answers the door. At the end of their rhyme the lady claps and hands each child a goody bag filled with sweets, wishing them a good night as they scurry off to the next house. Before she shuts the door, she smiles at you and John.

"Those children of yours are lovely." She remarks kindly. John smiles back in return.

"Thank you." With that, he bids her a goodnight as she closes the door. You just stand there awkwardly, wondering if you should mention that they aren't your kids, but then seeing no reason to say that to a stranger.

You and John have been together less than a year and this is the fifth time you have spent the day with his children. You know they are grieving for the loss of their mother five years ago, so they are tentative towards your relationship with their dad, particularly the older three. The youngest, Louis, was only a few months old when his mum died, so the idea of gaining another parental figure is something he welcomes. Still, even though you are serious about your relationship with John, you're nervous about getting too involved with his children. Not because you don't want to be close with them, but because you don't want them to think that you're trying to replace their mum.

You're pulled out of your worried mind by fingers lacing with yours. John squeezes your hand lightly and grins at you.

"C'mon love, they're running too far ahead," he tells you, "We've got to stay close behind. Louis will probably want to be carried soon."

No surprise, he's right. Louis' five year old legs can only carry him so far, before he is calling for his dad to pick him up. John carries his youngest on his right hip, with one arm around him, while the other hand still holds yours firmly. Thankfully there are only a few houses left and all four kids have their buckets filled with candy. By this point the kids are no longer running around, choosing to walk a few paces ahead of you and their dad. You really look like a family now. You even feel like you are a part of the family, as Katie whirls around to show you how close her bucket is to overflowing with sweets and James asks you to carry his Stormtrooper helmet when he gets tired of wearing it.

When the kids finally leave the last house, their energy comes back again. Now they are racing to get home and eat their treats. Even Louis wants to run ahead with his siblings. John lets him down and watches his children run towards the house, pulling you in by the hand and then wrapping his arm around your shoulder.

"So, how'd you enjoy that?" He asks softly with a gentle smile on his face.

"It was a lot of fun." You reply in an equally soft tone. His quiet words directed at you and the arm around your shoulder fills you with a warmth that battles the cold October night. In this moment you truly feel that you belong with him, belong with them.

"Well, we're not done yet," he tells you, and his smile becomes a coy grin. "We've still got to watch some movies."

Sure enough, the moment you get in the door, John's second child, Reggie, is running into the living room and digging out Hocus Pocus from the DVD pile. His brothers and sister follow him with their trick or treating buckets and pile onto the large L shaped sofa.

John leads you to the middle, where there is a large space between Katie and Reggie. The moment you sit down, Katie leans on your arm and curls up close to you. You smile down at her, but she pays no attention to you once the movie starts.

Just as you turn your head away from her, you feel something move onto your lap. You look down to see that Louis has moved onto John's lap and put his feet on yours. He also pays no attention to the two of you. It's then you notice that Reggie is resting his head on John's right shoulder and James is right next to him. There's plenty of room on the couch, and yet the kids decide to stay close to you and their dad.

You rest your head on John's shoulder and he places his head on top of yours. In this moment, surrounded by his family, a light fills you that you have never experienced before. A feeling of complete happiness and love washes over you as you spend the rest of the night with this family that you feel at home with.