enchanted
chapter 11, freddie's funeral.

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1921, Small Heath, Birmingham

Freddie Thorne was dead which was sad but it also meant that Ada was back in Birmingham so Rory got to see her aunt even if it was just for a day. Rory remembered picking up the phone to a crying Ada.

The sound of the phone ringing put a stop to Rory and Isaiah's bickering since Finn had given up at least half an hour ago and so had Louise, the two of them sitting side by side on one sofa their heads in their hands.

Rory made her way to the phone where she able to make out through Ada's sobs, "Freddie died, Roro."

"What?" she asked, confused. "No, he can't be dead. Auntie Ada tell me this is a joke." Isaiah's head whipped to the girl, Louise and Finn following.

"I wish it was kid," Ada spoke with a whisper while trying to calm Karl down. "Is your dad or Esme there?"

"No, they're both at work but Louise is," Rory told her motioning for the nanny to walk over. Louise stood beside Rory with a confused look as she leant down to try figure out what was going on. "I can put her on if you want?"

"Can you please?" Ada asked and the girl passed the phone to the nanny.

"Hello?"

"Hi, when either John or Esme get back can you please tell them that-" Ada sniffled. "Sorry. Can you please tell them that Freddie passed please." By the end of her sentence the woman's voice lowered to a whisper.

"Yeah," Louise nodded and cleared her throat. "Yeah, I'll tell them."

"Thank you."

"Ada, before you go. Ring me if you need anything," Louise told her.

"I will," she nodded."Thank you and can you tell Rory I love her please?"

"Yeah, I will."

"Thank you."

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Rory laid sulking in her bed, refusing to get up and ignoring Esme's shouts. "Rory I'm not going to tell you again. Get up so I can do your hair!" Esme shouted once again from the bottom of the stairs with the hairbrush in her hand.

"No! I'm not going!" Rory shouted back and pulled her pillow over her head.

"John!" Esme shouted to her husband who was standing in the doorway of Rory, Katie and Alice's bedroom.

"I'm sorting it!" John shouted back.

"I don't need sorting just leave me with Louise and I'll be fine," Rory muttered to her dad.

"Nope," John shook his head and walked further into the bedroom to rip off Rory's covers. "Get up. Ada needs you today."

"You said when uncle Danny died that a funeral wasn't the place for a kid to be so you left me with Lou," Rory reminded her dad of his words.

The man sighed not thinking she'd remember, "Come on, kid."

"No," she shook her head, shoving her face in her blanket. "Because if we go then it's all real again and I've lost another uncle and Ada leaves again."

A voice came from the doorway, "If you go today, it will be a final goodbye and you'll regret it if you don't go believe me," Esme told her then mouthed to John. "Go downstairs and I'll sort her."

"Come on sit up and I'll do your hair then you get your dress on," Esme told her tapping her thigh. The blonde sat up slowly and got her hair done in two plaits then made her way to the bathroom to brush her teeth and go back to get into her dress, which was black and Ada brought her it back from London.

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After getting 5 kids and themselves ready, they made their way to the service. All of their kids were crowded around their feet, but Henry was cradled in Esme's arms as she tried to shield him from the slight drizzle falling from the overcast skies above their heads which Rory complained at.

"Stop complaining and listen," Esme scolding the girl standing in-front of her and wrapped an arm around the front of her shoulders keeping her still.

When the priest finished speaking over Freddie's grave, Tommy Shelby stepped forwards and cleared his throat, "I promised my friend, Freddie Thorne, that I'd say a few words over his grave if he should pass before me. I made this promise before he became my brother-in-law, when we were in France, fighting for the king."

"Amen," Arthur preached.

"And in the end, it wasn't war that took Freddie. Pestilence took him," Tommy said.

Henry started crying in Esme's arms making Rory jump not expecting the baby to cry, so John held out his hands, "Let me take him. Come here. Shh-shh-shh."

"But Freddie passed on his soul and his spirit to a new generation, before he was cruelly taken," Tommy continued. "And his legacy will live on, in our Ada and her son, Karl."

When Tommy was finished, and everyone parted ways, Esme and John lost sight of the kids except Rory who refused to leave Esme's side.

Ada walked over to Rory after talking to Tommy and Pol, "I'm heading back home now, keep looking after Dusty and I'll see you soon yeah?" she said as she crouched down so she could hug Rory goodbye properly.

"I don't want you to go though," Rory whined, sniffing slightly.

Ada's gaze softened, "I know but I'll be back before you know it okay?."

"You say that and then you disappear again, don't sit there and say you'll do something then do the opposite," Rory replied rolling her eyes and walking away.

John stood next to his sister and watched his daughter walk over to Esme. "She'll come round, she'll be ringing you soon apologising trust me," he informed his sister.

"I get why she doesn't want me to leave, I've been there since the day she was born but she's not my only priority anymore," Ada sighed folding her arms.

"I know and will you trust me when I say she'll be ringing you tonight apologising for being a little shit?" he questioned his sister pulling her into a side hug.

"Yeah, tell her I love her, all of them yeah?" Ada nodded.

"I'll tell them don't worry," John replied.

"Well I suppose, this is goodbye for now then brother," Ada sighed pulling her brother into a proper hug.

John rubbed her back, "I suppose it is, stay safe."

"I will," Ada agreed.

The twins and Lottie were now stood with Rory, who had his cap on shielding her from the rain. "You know your siblings are stealing flowers from people's graves right?" Finn asked the girl standing next to him.

"Yeah but I'm not and there's no point trying to get them to put them back," Rory replied shrugging.

John walked over to the duo with a stern look on his face. "I'm not apologising," Rory interrupted whatever he was about to say.

"Yes you-" he started.

"Someone's blown up the Garrison," Pol stated before walking away again.

The twins and Rory looked at each other and then John who shrugged, "I know as much as you three."