Disclaimer: I do not own anything Peaky Blinder related, that belongs to the series creator Steven Knight.

Face Claim for Rosemary Parker: Celina Sinden.

Chapter Twenty-Four: The Funeral.

Staring down at the grave, Rosemary could not believe how fast they had managed to put this together; she guessed that they did not want to risk Martha passing on anything especially with the Spanish Flu still lingering around. It had happened quickly and Rosemary still could not quite believe that the woman was gone leaving her four children motherless; her daughter would never know her mother like her siblings would.

Rosemary recalled popping around to help out with the children, she had done what she could to help out along with Polly and Ada while the men had been working. She had not been able to stay long since she had her own household to manage but she was determined to do her part no matter how small it was; she had been pleased to see Martha up and talking when she had been there.

The death of Martha had rocked the family, the entire street had expressed their condolences and Mrs Jones had even stopped by to watch the children for a couple of hours while arrangements were being made. Thomas squeezed her hand snapping her from her thoughts as the funeral slowly ended and Martha's coffin was finally lowered into the cold, hard ground; it was strange to think that they were here to bury one of their own.

Across from where they were standing stood John and his children, the younger ones clearly not understanding what had happened to their mother while their father cried next to them. John had barely been able to be around his children since their mother had passed and the care of the children had fallen to the women who tried to manage them but it wasn't always an easy task when they had so many questions.

However, it was not easy and Polly was the one that had stepped forward to take charge there; she was hopeful that things would settle down soon and that John would have his chance to grieve and realise that he still had a part of Martha in each of his children. James, Steven, and Margaret were all huddled together against the cold December wind; they were silent as the funeral slowly started to an end and they looked so sad dressed in their black outfits.

Thomas watched the scene before him, his heart went out to John knowing that this could easily have been him if Rosemary had not recovered from the Spanish Flu. He doubted that he would have even managed to attend the funeral, to watch as the woman that he loved was lowered into the earth. There had been no official cause of death for Martha, though the doctor had speculated that her condition had been weakened in some way and the bleeding had not helped; she had lost a lot of blood during the delivery.

It made Thomas even more determined to get away from the cramped conditions that they currently lived in; there was barely room to breathe some days and the houses were far too small. He could imagine a home in the countryside, a place where Kathleen and any other children that they had would be able to play in the clean fresh air.

There would be no need for Rosemary to work, he would see her happily manage their home and they'd have room to entertain important guests. A better life than anything that he or Rosemary had growing up, he wanted only the best for his children and he knew that things would only get better for them.

Once the funeral was done, Polly ushered the children away offering a concerned glance at John who was walking alongside Arthur; his head bowed and anyone could guess what was going through his mind right now. There was to be a wake at the Garrison and she could only imagine how drunk John was going to get; she had her hands full with his four children without having to deal with him.

It was hard enough explaining to the children, who didn't quite understand that their mother was gone; it was even harder to explain why their father was barely home these days. Wrapping his arm around Rosemary, Thomas walked her out of the graveyard; they had to pick up Kathleen up from one of the neighbours and then Thomas had promised to join his brothers. Arthur had taken John under his wing since Martha had died, they did not think being around Thomas was helping him much especially since Thomas had Rosemary to come home to.

Staring out the window at their back garden, Rosemary found herself lost in thought again while Kathleen played in the living room; fresh snow covered the ground as far as she could see. The sun had gone down and Rosemary found that most of the day was a blare, it had passed by quicker than she realised and the next few days were probably the same as they all came to terms with Martha's death.

It made her think of the future, Thomas was always talking about being better for Kathleen but her husband's determination was only increasing with each passing day. The longer that he had been back from war, the more determined he seemed to be about improving their lives; something that she knew that he had already put in motion.

Although he would not share his plans with her, he claimed it was better that she did not know what he was planning. The sound of the front door opening and closing, made Rosemary turn away from the window to get Thomas's dinner from the oven where she had been keeping it warm. Kathleen's squeal of daddy only confirmed who had entered the house and Rosemary smiled; despite the fact that Thomas had missed so much of their daughter's first few years, there was no denying she was very much a daddy's girl.

Stepping into the kitchen, Thomas smiled at the sight of Rosemary and he set Kathleen back on the floor and ruffled her hair before he moved to sit down at their kitchen table. Coming home to this was all that he had dreamt of when he had been away at war and Thomas loved that his home was now filled with life; it felt like a home instead of a place where he slept.

It was all down to Rosemary that such a change had taken place, she had changed the empty shell into a place where she had raised their daughter while he was away fighting. There was always an inviting smell greeting him when he entered the house, his dinner ready and Kathleen came to greet him if he arrived home early enough to see her before bed with a smile always on her face. It made him think about what it would be like should they ever have more children, he wanted Kathleen to grow up with siblings like he had; he was sure that it would happen sooner rather than later.

Rosemary set his dinner before him and smiled, a little relieved that he had not come home drunk as a skunk from the wake and she could only imagine what sort of state John was in. It didn't seem to her that he had been sober in any form since Martha's death, she was pretty sure he'd even been drinking before attending the funeral.

The man had not been coping with the loss of his wife, it had come as a nasty shock for him especially when he had not longed returned from spending four years in the trenches to his family. The house that he lived in was filled with memories of his wife, the woman that had done so much for him and was the mother of their children.

"How was John?" Rosemary asked softly, she moved away from Thomas to finish the dishes while he enjoyed his dinner; she would be putting Kathleen to bed soon, it was pretty late now that she thought about it. Thomas did not say anything as he tucked into the simple meal that Rosemary had prepared for him; his stomach grateful for the food after the alcohol he had consumed.

He had been one of the soberer members to leave and he knew that Ada had lingered a little longer to help clean up for which he was sure the owner was thankful. Although she had offered many a concerned look at John, who had been slouched down at a table having drunk himself to oblivion in just a few hours.

"He's staying at Arthur's for the night, he was in no state to go home," Thomas replied shaking his head, he could only imagine what Polly would have to say when she found out. His aunt had been staying at John's to help out with the children and he knew that she was not going to just let him ignore his children; it was his responsibility to care for them.

There was only so much grace that Polly would give him during this time, he couldn't avoid his responsibilities to his family forever; Martha would haunt his ass if she knew what he was like right now. Rosemary sighed, she guessed that he had gotten rather drunk at the wake if he were staying with Arthur; hopefully, the older brother would be able to knock some sense into him. Martha would not want him to ignore or abandon their children, it was the last thing she would want her husband to do to their four children.

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