Hello friends! I've been a Downton fan for ages, but am a new fan of Taylor Swift. I've been seeing a lot of headcanons in various fandoms about characters visiting an Eras Tour concert, and I thought John and Anna would be perfect for this idea. I've never been to any Taylor Swift concerts, let alone the Eras Tour, so I apologize for any inaccuracies in terms of that. Anyway, I hope you enjoy, and feel free to interact with me here or on my Tumblr, lilagrae.
John clutched Felicity's hand tightly, keeping her close to him, as they weaved through the crowd at Taylor Swift's London Eras Tour concert at Wembley Stadium. She bounced with excitement beside him, gazing in awe as she observed everyone's glittery outfits and the bright lights of the stadium. Her eyes widened as the stage came into view, pointing excitedly at it, "Look, Daddy! That's where Taylor will be!"
John followed her gaze, nodding along, "Wow, yes, it's quite a big stage, isn't it?" he hummed, "C'mon now, Flick, this way. Our seats are just down there," he pointed. She had begged him for floor tickets, but he'd been nervous having to mind her in a sea of tipsy women, screeching teenagers, and his prosthetic leg, so he'd decided on tickets just behind the floor that came with an actual seat instead of simply standing room only. Floor tickets were most definitely out of his budget anyway.
John showed an usher their tickets and they were led to their seats, Felicity's mouth dropping open at their view, "Daddy, we're so close! Thank you!" she cheered, crushing her small body into his in a hug. John had gifted her the tickets for her birthday, and the concert seemed to be the only thing she talked about in the months leading up to it. She had first listened to Taylor Swift on the car radio one afternoon when she was three years old, and ever since then she had been obsessed. She had John download all of the albums onto his phone and various posters splattered with Taylor's face covered the walls of her bedroom. She'd even gone as Taylor Swift for Halloween this past year. There were many places John would rather be than a four hour long Taylor Swift concert on a Saturday night, but he would do anything for his little girl.
They had to sit through the opening act before Taylor Swift came on stage, which Felicity wasn't as interested in, and so she sat on her chair beside John, telling him which surprise songs she'd like to hear Taylor perform tonight. Knowing she would be dancing the night away and screaming at the top of her lungs until her voice was hoarse, John had come prepared with snacks and a water bottle for her. She accepted a package of peanut butter sandwich crackers happily and swung her legs off the edge of her chair as she nibbled on them in between talking to her father.
Anna had been a fan of Taylor Swift for as long as she could remember and she was willing to do almost anything to get tickets for the Eras Tour. She'd sat her friend Mary and her fancy credit card down at the computer an hour before the ticket presale opened to make sure she secured seats for all of their friends, and by some stroke of luck they'd been able to purchase seats just behind the floor section. She was twenty six, still young, but that didn't mean she wanted to be on her feet all night in cowboy boots and pressed up against everyone else's sweaty bodies.
Anna felt like, well, a girl at her first Taylor Swift concert as she stepped out of the limousine Mary had hired and onto the grounds of Wembley Stadium. The energy was incredible and she couldn't help but squeal as they approached the gates, "I can't believe we're here!" she sighed gleefully. Mary rolled her eyes at Anna's reactions, but Anna knew she was just as excited as she was, especially since this was her first night out after George had been born, "Don't act like you're not excited too, Mary," she chimed.
Mary put her hands up in surrender, "Alright, fine, you've got me there. But maybe save all this energy for when Taylor actually gets here," she requested playfully.
Anna led the girls to their seats, Mary, Edith, Sybil, and Gwen trailing behind her. She found the row quickly and stepped in first, "Alright, I'm in seat thirteen and we have chairs thirteen through seventeen," she told them all as they began to settle down.
Felicity looked up from her snack at the commotion of her new neighbors arriving and her eyes widened in wonder as she saw the women all dressed up as the themes of various albums. She haphazardly handed her snack wrapper to John and stood up, tapping Anna's arm gently.
"I love your dress, it's so pretty!" she grinned, "I love all the colors. Is it for 'Lover'? It looks like the sky on the album cover!" Felicity observed curiously. Anna's dress was a watercolor of pastel rainbow colored tulle and sequins and she had paired it with white boots and a pink ribbon in her hair.
John had begun to get up to guide Felicity away from this group of women who were clearly having a girls night, but the petite blonde one gave him a kind and reassuring smile before she bent down to speak to Felicity.
"Thank you- that's exactly what I was going for! If I'm right, your outfit is for 'Lover' too, and we match," she grinned, pointing to Felicity's dress which was pink and covered with red hearts, and she had paired with matching pink cowboy boots.
Felicity nodded happily, "Yes! That's my favorite album," she told Anna.
"My friends have all dressed up too. Would you like to meet them? If it's okay with your dad, of course," she added, glancing over at John, "I'm Anna, by the way, what's your name?" she asked.
"Felicity, but I like Flick better. That's what my Daddy calls me," she explained to Anna, "Daddy!" she turned around, "Say hi to my friend Anna!"
John stuck out his hand for Anna to shake, "Hi Anna. I'm John," he replied, a kind smile on his lips, "I'm sorry if she's bothering you, I can take-" he said quietly so Felicity wouldn't hear.
Anna discreetly shook her head, "She's not, I promise," she reassured him. She shook his hand, "Well, hi John. It's nice to meet you and Flick." He seemed like a kind man, and she thought it was sweet that he was taking his young daughter to a concert. She'd noticed him listening intently to Felicity's musings about Taylor's surprise songs as she'd walked down the aisle to her seat, and despite his obvious confusion, he'd humored her anyway by adding in his suggestions.
"Would it be alright if I introduced Flick to my friends? They're just here, in the seats beside me. We're all sober and very responsible with children, I promise," she teased him.
John nodded, rubbing his hand on Felicity's back, "Alright, go ahead Flick. I'll be right here if you need me," he promised her.
"Thank you Daddy!" she beamed before grasping Anna's hand.
Anna clasped her hand with Felicity's and smiled softly to John, hoping to convey that she would take care of his little girl for him, "Let's see if you can guess which album everyone is dressed as," she told Felicity as she approached Mary.
"Mary, meet my new friend Flick," she prompted, "She's sitting next to us, with her Dad," she explained, motioning towards John who gave a shy wave.
Mary turned around at Anna's voice, putting the finishing touches on her red lipstick, "Oh, hello. Aren't you just the cutest little thing?" she said looking down at Felicity.
"Hi, Mary," she giggled, "Are you Reputation?" she asked.
"Wow," she smirked playfully, "You're good, I am in fact dressed as Reputation," she answered, showing off her black leather pants and black crop top.
The other girls had heard Felicity by now and watched as Anna interacted with her, "Oh, guess me next!" Sybil clapped excitedly, spinning around in her purple dress to show it off.
"Speak Now!" Felicity guessed easily, "And your earrings are butterflies, that's so cool!" she added, "I want to get my ears pierced, but my daddy says I'm not big enough yet," she pouted briefly.
"I understand your struggle," Anna reassured her, "I wasn't allowed to get my ears pierced until I was ten!" she told her, causing Felicity's mouth to drop open.
"I'm only seven, so ten feels so far away!" she laughed, "Hopefully I don't have to wait that long..." she mused.
"Hopefully not," Anna lamented with her, "C'mon, let's guess what Edith is dressed as," she prompted.
Staring at Edith's long white dress with lace details and cardigan sweater, Felicity took a moment to think, "Hmmm, this one is a little trickier," she admitted, "But is it Folklore?" she asked hopefully.
"Yes!" Edith cheered, "You've got it! Great job," she grinned, offering her a high five, which she happily accepted.
"Alright, let's see if you can go five for five," Gwen started, "Which era am I?" Gwen was wearing a pair of wide leg white jeans, a red top, red converse sneakers, and red heart-shaped sunglasses.
"Red!" she cheered, jumping up and down enthusiastically.
Gwen offered her a high five as well and the other girls cheered for her, joining in on her excitement. It was then that Felicity noticed all of them wearing beaded bracelets on their wrists and she reached out for Sybil's hand, admiring all of the bracelets, "Woah, did you make all of these?" she asked curiously, running her fingers along the beads.
"Yeah, we helped, but Anna made most of them. Do you want to trade bracelets?" Sybil asked her.
Felicity looked at her own bare wrists sadly, "I don't have any to trade," she sighed, biting her lip. She hadn't known there would be bracelet trading at the concert.
Anna intervened quickly, bending down so she was the same height as Felicity, "Oh, don't worry about that. We have plenty. Which one would you like?" Anna asked, holding out her wrists so that Felicity could see all the bracelets she was wearing.
Felicity's eyes lit up, "Really? I could have one?" she asked eagerly.
"You can have more than one if you'd like, I've got plenty to spare, and so do my friends," she assured her.
Felicity immediately honed in on one that said 'lover' with pastel rainbow beads, "Lover! Like our outfits!" she declared.
Anna nodded, "Good choice," she advised, slipping the bracelet off of her wrist and onto Felicity's. Each of the girls had given Felicity a bracelet, and she couldn't stop admiring them, immediately running to John to show him.
"Daddy!" she shouted, skipping back over to where he had been observing, "Daddy look! Anna and her friends have given me bracelets! They made them!" she explained breathlessly, holding out her wrists for John to see.
John raised his eyebrows, holding her small hands on in his larger ones, "Wow, these are very nice. Have you said thank you?" he asked, an eyebrow raised playfully.
Felicity gasped and immediately turned around to find Anna, throwing her arms around her, "Thank you Anna!" she shouted, before turning back to John so she could explain what each bracelet meant to him.
As she babbled on, John's eyes found Anna's, "Thank you for humoring her," he said softly, "You've made her whole night, truly," he swore, "I didn't know about the outfits, or the bracelets, so thank you for including her."
Anna's expression softened, both relieved and pleased at John's kindness and humility, "Of course. I really don't mind at all- I love kids, and she's so adorable and well-behaved. It's so sweet to see everything through her eyes," she explained, "And I especially don't mind because she has such a cute dad," she smirked, patting his arm quickly before turning her attention back to Felicity, "Now, Flick, don't you think your dad needs a bracelet too?" she grinned mischievously.
Felicity nodded conspiratorially, "Yes! He does!"
John rolled his eyes, a blush on his cheeks already in response to Anna's compliment, dragging his hand over his face, pretending to be annoyed at the prospect of wearing jewelry, "Oh, I don't know Flick..."
Anna grinned, catching onto his little game, "I have the perfect one for you, John," she said, pulling a bracelet from her wrist that read 'enchanted' and was made of purple sparkly beads. She slipped it onto his wrist, giving his hand a squeeze before letting Felicity read it.
"Enchanted!" she cheered, "That's a love song, Daddy!" she gasped.
Anna shrugged, "Maybe it is. I'll tell you when it comes on and you can judge that for yourself," she winked. She wasn't usually this forward, especially with men she had just met, but there was something about John that inspired it in her. He was kind, humble, and gentle, though still a bit shy and guarded. Maybe it was irresponsible or reckless of her, but she wanted to get to know him better, even though their interactions thus far had been limited.
Anna saved him from having to respond when she announced she would be going to the merchandise stand now to get the t-shirt she had been eyeing and Felicity immediately declared she wanted to do the same. Anna's friends decided they wanted to stay behind and finish watching the opening performance, saying they would text Anna with the merch items they wanted and Venmo her the money later. Seemingly, they had caught on to her little flirtation and decided to give her some time alone with John. Or as alone as one could get with a seven year old to watch.
John held Felicity's hand as they followed Anna towards the merchandise counter, keeping her close to him among the crowds. She was excitedly watching all of the people and bouncing along to the music currently emanating from the stage, and so John took the opportunity to talk to Anna, "So, how long have you been a Taylor Swift fan then?" he asked. He was curious about that, but mostly he wanted to attempt and determine how old she was.
She smiled, answering his question easily, "Oh, since year seven, when I started secondary school, and her first album came out," she told him.
"Oof," he groaned, a hand to his chest, pretending to be wounded, "That makes me feel old."
She chuckled softly, "Nonsense. And to answer the question I know you really want the answer to, I'm twenty six," she smirked.
He smiled sheepishly, embarrassed to have been caught, "It's not polite to ask a lady how old she is. I had to find out somehow," he pointed out.
"Well, now it's only fair that you tell me how old you are," she countered.
A quiet, "Hmmph," left his lips before he answered, worried this would ruin his chances, "Thirty eight," he cringed.
Anna's response wasn't what he was expecting, "A distinguished gentlemen. Just how I like them," she admitted with a smirk as they arrived at the merchandise stand, "Alright, Flick, just a short line, not too bad. We will definitely be back before Taylor comes on, don't worry," Anna reassured her.
Felicity screeched excitedly, pointing to one of the t-shirts displayed on the wall, "That one, Daddy, that's the one I want. Please?" she asked excitedly.
John couldn't help but grin at her delight, "Of course, darling, I think that can be arranged," he promised her, "Who knows, maybe I'll even get one to match," he shrugged.
"That's the spirit!" Anna cheered, "I think you'll look very dashing in your Taylor Swift t-shirt," she laughed softly.
The line inched forward, and as it did, John continued to chat with Anna, "So, are you from London, or are you just visiting for the concert?" he asked.
"Technically, I'm from Yorkshire, but I've lived in London since just after university. I'm a pediatric speech therapist and I work at a practice on Harley Street," she explained, "What about you?" she asked, "Are you and Flick Londoners?"
Ah, so that's why she was so good with his daughter, "No wonder you're so good with children then," he complimented her, "And yes, we are. Though I'm from Dublin, originally. I moved to London once I came back from serving in the Army. That was before I had Flick, though," he told her.
"Oh, well, yes, I suppose I am. It is part of my job, but I've always loved kids. And my friends, the ones I'm here with, three of them have made me an aunt," she smiled, happy to hear that he thought she was good with his daughter. Her face lit up with recognition, "I knew it! I knew I heard something else in your accent," she laughed before her eyes widened, "Oh, gosh, thank you for your service," she answered quickly, "Did you serve for a long time or...?" she asked before stopping herself, "Sorry, that's probably not an appropriate question. You don't have to talk about it," she covered.
He cleared his throat, "No, it's alright, you can ask," he assured her, "I'm in a good place about it now," he promised, "I joined when I was eighteen and I did two tours in the Middle East before I was injured," he began to explain, "My left leg, um, well it was injured, and now I have a prosthetic," he said awkwardly, hoping this wouldn't reverse all the progress flirting he'd made with Anna.
Anna gasped, not because she was horrified or disgusted, but because for some reason she felt guilty, "I'm so sorry-" she started.
"It's so cool!" Felicity chimed in, "He's like a robot!"
John and Anna both laughed in relief, glad for an interruption in the heavy conversation.
"Yes, like a robot," John nodded, "Quite right, Flick."
Suddenly, it was their turn in line, and John motioned for Anna to step in front of him, "Ladies first," he smirked.
Anna chuckled to herself before stepping up to the counter, beginning to read off the text requests her friends had sent while they waited in line. When all of her purchases had been loaded into bags, John held his hand out, offering to hold one of them for her. She handed it to him with a grateful smile.
John purchased the matching shirts for himself and Felicity, slipping his own over his head before turning towards Anna, his arms outstretched, "So, how do I look?" he joked.
"Dashing, just as I predicted," Anna told him honestly.
He smiled shyly, smoothing his hands over the fabric, "Well, that's just what a man likes to hear."
As he brushed his hands over his chest, Anna noticed the lack of a wedding band on his left hand. Just what a woman liked to see.
'Well, Flick, shall we head back to our seats now? I think Taylor should be on in just about ten minutes," Anna declared, offering her hand out to Felicity.
"Yes, let's go!" she cheered excitedly, barely able to contain herself, skipping as she walked back to the seats, standing between John and Anna, each of their hands clutched in hers.
Throughout the concert, Felicity had gone between dancing with Anna and her friends, jumping up and down excitedly, screaming the lyrics along with them, and spinning around with John, holding his hands, attempting to get him to sing along with her. He couldn't help but crack a smile as he watched Felicity and how utterly elated she was. Felicity had screamed the lyrics to 'Cruel Summer' with her new friends, despite not really understanding what the lyrics meant, she'd clutched Anna's hand excitedly when 'Lover' played, and swayed in John's arms as she listened to 'willow'.
And then, song number nineteen on the setlist started, "There I was again tonight..." Taylor sang. Felicity was entranced by Taylor singing on stage, and was currently standing next to Sybil who was excited to hear the first song from the Speak Now album, the two clutching hands eagerly.
Anna, now standing beside John, nudged him, "This is the song," she started, "The one from your bracelet," she smiled, a bit nervously this time. She was simultaneously worried that he wouldn't understand what she was trying to insinuate with the lyrics or that he would find it too forward that a woman he had just met at a concert was trying to flirt with him, in front of his daughter, via Taylor Swift lyrics. Too late to take anything back now, she supposed.
John meanwhile, was also nervous. He had picked up on the fact that Anna had flirted with him earlier, but it had been so long since that last happened he wasn't quite sure how to react. He was also concerned that he wouldn't understand what she was trying to convey, because interpreting Taylor Swift lyrics wasn't exactly a skill of his. He looked down at the bracelet, reading the word once more, his fingers tracing it before he looked at Anna, a soft smile on his lips before turning his eyes to the stage.
The song continued and when Taylor sang,
"All I can say is, it was enchanting to meet you,"
John turned back to look at Anna, the smile on his face growing. Ah, he was beginning to understand.
Once she reached the portion where she sang,
"The playful conversation starts,
Counter all your quick remarks,"
John chuckled to himself, thinking back to earlier in the night when Anna had snuck a purple sparkly bracelet onto his wrist and had somehow convinced him to wear a t-shirt splattered with Taylor Swift's face all over it with her cheeky compliments. Conversing with Anna throughout the night so far had been surprisingly refreshing. He spent most of his time with his young daughter and at work, which he conducted from his home office via Zoom meetings, so speaking with Anna, someone so young and vibrant, but surprisingly mature, was a...treat. They had really only had brief real conversation while waiting in the merchandise line, but it left him craving more.
"The night is sparkling,
Don't you let it go"
The night thus far had been going much better than she ever anticipated. She was at a Taylor Swift concert with her best friends, wearing a shimmering outfit, and had even, to her shock, met a handsome man and his adorable daughter. Dare she even say she had made friends with them both. She certainly hadn't expected that to happen when she walked into Wembley Stadium, but she was quite pleased about it. As she listened to Taylor sing the lyrics, she couldn't help but feel them resonate with her; Taylor was right- the night was sparkling and she shouldn't let it go. Maybe it was irresponsible or naive, but she thought John was special, and she wasn't going to let him go.
"I'm wonderstruck, blushing all the way home,
I'll spend forever wondering if you knew
I was enchanted to meet you"
Anna stepped closer to John, reaching out to trace over the letters on his bracelet.
"The lingering question kept me up,
2AM, who do you love?
I wonder 'til I'm wide awake,
And now I'm packing back and forth,
Wishing you were at my door
I'd open up and you would say, 'Hey'"
Anna couldn't say that she'd ever been in love before. She'd had a few casual boyfriends in secondary school and a serious one during university, Alex Green, who had turned out to be a cruel, evil man who had cheated on her and emotionally abused her, and ever since then, she'd been hesitant to pursue any new relationships. It had been difficult to see her closest friends all find men they loved, marry, and have children all while she didn't have any of those things. She hadn't lost hope though, and maybe that mindset was finally paying off.
John had thought he had been in love once, but he now knew that wasn't true. After his leg injury and discharge from the military, he'd met a woman, Vera, at a bar one night, and the two had gone home together. Reflecting back on it now, it definitely wasn't a good idea to begin a new relationship when he was going through two major life changes at once, the loss of his leg and career, but he'd been high on the attention and what he thought was love, and Felicity had been conceived that night. He had tried to make the relationship work once they found out about the pregnancy, but the truth was is that they weren't suited to each other, and all of the things John valued, like family, hard work, and honesty, Vera couldn't care less about. As soon as their daughter was born she admitted she wanted nothing to do with being a wife or a mother, signed over her parental rights to John, and he had never seen her again, which, as he reflected on it now, was for the best. He'd always hoped that one day he would find someone though, someone that would love both him and his daughter.
"This is me praying that,
This was the very first page,
Not where the story line ends,
My thoughts will echo your name, until I see you again"
Anna didn't want to leave this concert with any regrets of what could have been.
"Please don't be in love with someone else,
Please don't have somebody waiting on you"
They gazed at each other, a silent question in their eyes. John stepped closer to Anna, offering his other hand to her, her other hand still clasping his bracelet. He shook his head to say that no, he didn't have anyone else waiting for him at home.
"I was enchanted to meet you"
Anna took a deep breath, a surge of confidence rushing through her, "John, can I kiss you?" she asked softly.
He nodded, not bothering with words, before leaning down and pressing his lips to hers.
When the dulcet tones of 'Enchanted' finished playing and the upbeat notes of "22" began, John stepped back from the kiss, a sheepish smile on his lips, "Definitely sounds like a love song to me," he whispered, brushing back a piece of Anna's blonde hair that had been caught in her lip gloss from her face.
They'd enjoyed the remainder of the concert, standing close to each other, shy touches, their fingers brushing each other's, John's hand smoothing down her back occasionally. They hadn't gotten a moment to have a serious conversation again or sneak another kiss between Felicity wanting to dance with John, and Anna screaming the lyrics to her favorite songs with her friends.
As they walked out of the concert, John carrying a sleeping Felicity in his arms, Anna grasped his hand, stopping him before they went their separate ways.
"John," she started, "Do you think I could see you again?" she asked, a hopeful look in her eyes but her body tensed with nerves.
John cleared his throat, "I'd really like that, Anna," he assured her, squeezing her hand gently.
She smiled instantly, the tension leaving her body, "Here," she said, holding out her cellphone, "Put in your phone number and I'll text you," she explained.
John did as he was told, typing in his name and phone number, "Thank you for such an amazing night, on behalf of Felicity too. You didn't have to include her, but you did, and that means so much to me," he told her honestly.
Anna smiled bashfully, "Well, believe it or not, but you both made my night. It wouldn't have been the same without you. I was enchanted to meet you," she smirked, planting a kiss on his cheek before skipping off to rejoin her friends.
Later that night, after putting Felicity to bed, John looked at his phone to see that he had a new text message.
It simply read, "You belong with me-Taylor Swift- Anna Smith"