Title: Fluffy Bunny
Characters: The Townshends and The Entwistles
Word Count: 1,913
Rating: PG
Warnings/Spoilers/Summary: It's Easter, 1975. Pete & Cady are hosting Easter Brunch at their house. Guests include Pete's family and John, his son, and mother. Pete & Cady's children are six and four, while John's son is three. Cuteness abounds. Totally canon and totally has spoilers.


Hand darting out, Cady snagged Alec by his collar, keeping the boy from pursuing his sister who in turn was chasing after Chris. She picked up the squirming four-year-old and deposited him on the kitchen counter. Dampening a rag, she wiped the smudge of dirt off her son’s face. He scowled and tried to pull away from her.

“Mum!”

“I am not letting you sit in the picture with dirt on your face, young man,” she declared, attempting to tuck his shirt back in.

“Mum,” he whined again.

Cady shifted him back to the floor, “Go see if Grammy needs anything, okay?”

He groaned and shuffled out of the kitchen. Shaking her head, Cady turned back to retrieving plates for Easter brunch. Feeling his presence a moment before a hand touched the small of her back, she glanced over her shoulder. Smiling blue eyes met sparkling blue eyes. His lips gently touched hers, before he pulled away.

“Let me get those,” he stated.

With his body still trapping her against the counter, Cady turned around slowly, watching his face as he removed the dishes from the cupboard. Setting them down behind her, his lips dipped down and kissed hers once more. He reached up and caressed her cheek as she allowed the kiss to deepen.

“Pete, where are the–” his mother stopped in the entrance to the kitchen and quickly turned away, flushing. “Nevermind. Take your time.”

The couple chuckled uneasily, before Pete remarked that he would take the dishes out right away and see if he could round up the kids for the photo his mother and John’s mother wanted to take. Taking a moment, Cady collected silverware and cloth napkins before heading out to the patio. With a remarkably nice and sunny day, odd for a March day in London, the decision to move the activities outside had been simple. With flowers from John decorating the large table and the children running around giggling in the moist grass, everything seemed perfect.

Blocking Audrey and Chris from running back into the house, Cady directed the children towards the table. Shaking her head as her daughter bossed around her younger godbrother, she watched the two distribute the napkins and silverware around the table. Her eyes glanced around the backyard, flicking from Pete’s brothers who huddled around something, Alec pushing their legs apart to join their conversation, to his parents who discussed something animatedly with Pete. Smiling, she began to wonder where John was, noticing his mother fussed about trying organize the brunch, but he was nowhere to be seen.

“Shall we eat first before the kids see what the Easter Bunny brought?” his deep voice spoke from behind her as he stepped up beside her.

Her eyes went to his and she grinned, “I would ask tell you to ask the children’s opinion, but they will want chocolate before brunch.”

He chuckled and held out a sparkling glass full of mimosa, “Afterwards then. Good thing I hid the baskets of chocolate where they will not melt.”

She accepted the glass, “Perhaps you can convince the Easter Bunny to lend your mum a hand then.”

John smirked, “I will see to it.”



Holding onto a small basket, Cady grinned as Alec ran around the backyard with Audrey and Chris, trying to collect as many eggs as possible. He giggled, running back with a shirt full of eggs, and dumped them into the basket. Glancing over at Pete, she winked, motioning to the basket he held for Audrey as she did the same thing. A bit confused, three-year-old Chris hurried towards Alec’s basket with his arm full of plastic eggs. He stumbled on the edge of patio, falling on his face. His eggs shot out of his arms, a few of them breaking open, causing jelly beans and small, foiled chocolates to scatter about the patio with the eggs. Without pause, Cady set down the basket in her hands and scooped up the young child. Already wailing, he clung tightly to her, burying his face on her shoulder.

John approached, reaching out for his son. While Chris looked to his father, he refused to shift out of Cady’s arms. She whispered in his ear, trying to calm him as she headed into the house. The bassist trailed after, keeping his distance as his son did not seem to need him.

Setting Chris on the kitchen counter, Cady cleaned off his scuffed hands and brushed off his knees. She pulled up his short pants to check the skin on his knees. Her lips touched each knee before she kissed his hands and then reached to tickle him. Soon his giggles replaced his sobs and he smiled through his tears.

“That’s my boy,” Cady kissed his forehead.

He pouted, “I losted.”

“No, sweetie, you didn’t,” she kissed him again. “In fact, I think you won.”

“How?” his eyes widened.

“Well, you see,” Cady reached for the young boy, settling him on her hip, “the Easter Bunny hid something very special inside the house. I think I know where we can find it... will you help me look?”

“Auddie and Alec?”

“We’ll let them finish outside and we can take their special presents out to them,” she declared.

“Okay.”

“Where should we look first?”

“I no know.”

She kissed his temple and whispered loudly, “Well I happen to know that your Daddy knows the Easter Bunny really well. Maybe we should ask him.”

Chris looked over at John, “Where, Dadda?”

“Well,” his eyes flicked to Cady, not entirely sure what she was talking about, “I think perhaps we should start in the…”

“Parlour?” Cady suggested.

“Ah, yes, the parlour. Right near the front door,” John nodded, turning towards the hallway.

Setting down the little boy, Cady remained in the entranceway with John as he hurried about the room. The bassist lit a cigarette as he watched the little boy move about, crawling under the furniture, looking under the table. He smiled as the little boy opened a drawer in the china cabinet, discovering three little fluffy stuffed bunnies. He gasped and turned towards the two adults.

“Look what I founded!” he gasped, holding up two stuffed animals.

Cady grinned, “Good job, Chris. How many?”

“Um… Um…” he pulled out another one. “Dis many!”

“How many is that, Chris?” John asked.

“I no know, Dadda.”

“Yes, you do, son.”

His blue eyes widened as he looked up at his dad. He said nothing. Wordlessly Cady entered the room fully and squatted in front of the young boy. She kissed his forehead, reaching for the stuffed bunnies.

“One… two…”

“Three!” Chris exclaimed, his eyes going to hers.

“Exactly,” she grinned. “Let’s go show the other children what you found.”

“Okay,” he agreed, gathering all three in his arms.

Chris skirted around his father, heading into the hallway. Following after him, Cady paused in front of John, pressing her palm to his chest. Her eyes went to his and she smiled slightly. Though John attempted to smile in return, he merely sighed.

“I just don’t… I thought maybe he would… I…”

“I don’t ever see him interact with Alison, ever since the two of you separated, or really much before then, but since he spends so much time with her… and she is rather acidic towards you…” Cady muttered softly.

John sighed, “I know.”

“Come on. Let’s not think of that now. Chris is going to need our help to open the door and get out to everyone else,” she winked before heading down the hallway.

“Cade,” he reached for her hand, stopping her just inside the living room.

She pivoted to meet his eyes.

“Thank you for being so wonderful to me and my son,” John declared softly.

“Of course, love,” she grinned. “Let’s join back up with everyone.”



Returning to the living room after tucking in Audrey and Alec, Pete slipped back onto the couch next to Cady. His arm easily snaked around her shoulders and he leaned over, kissing her temple. She shifted slightly to lean more into his embrace, but not much as Chris slept on the couch with his head in her lap. Her fingers gently played with his messy hair. John sat in an armchair on the other side of the room, slowly sipping on a glass of wine. Both his mother and Pete’s family had long since left, leaving the young families to play and spend relaxed time together.

Sighing, John lit a cigarette, “I probably should take him home.”

“No need,” Cady smiled down at the sleeping boy. “He’s sound asleep. And perfect just where he is.”

“Though why are you sitting so far away?” Pete asked, before sipping from his wine glass.

“I, uh…” he inhaled his cigarette. “There is no more room on that side of the room.”

“Hogwash,” Cady said softly. “Just lift your son up carefully and sit beside me.”

“But he doesn’t like me. If he wakes up, he’ll scream and–”

“He won’t wake up.”

“But–”

“Watch,” she instructed.

Pulling away from Pete, her hands gently slipped under Chris’s small body. She slowly adjusted him fully into her arms, guiding his head to her shoulder. The little boy’s hand flexed and gently clasped around the soft dress fabric of her bodice, his other arm still clutching the stuffed rabbit to his chest. His little lips twitched, almost like he was suckling on something in his dreams. Both John and Pete watched as she shifted the little boy into a natural, maternal embrace. He did not stir at all, but slept on.

“You make it look so natural,” John commented as he stubbed out his cigarette, got to his feet, and carefully sat beside Cady.

“It isn’t rocket science, John,” she replied, glancing up from his son to him. “I believe that I can do it and then I do it. It’s not any different than you believing you to be the best bass player and the rest of the world agreeing.”

“I suppose,” he reached over and gently touched Chris’s head. “I just… he really has never been… okay around me.”

“That’s because his mother is a raging loon,” Pete commented before finishing his glass of wine and setting it down. “Her behavior is likely erratic around him and your… distance, just makes him wary of you. He’ll grow out of it.”

“I don’t know…”

“Why don’t you hold him now?” Cady offered. “He’s very asleep. I doubt he’ll wake up no matter what you do. Getting used to your scent could be a good step forward.”

“I…”

“Trust me,” she stated softly, shifting towards him.

John’s fingers gently pried Chris’s grip free of Cady’s dress. His eyes flicked to hers briefly as she rolled the toddler into his arms. Cady turned fully towards John, helping him adjust Chris against his chest. She kissed Chris’s head and then shifted fully into leaning against Pete, smiling reassuringly at John. He smiled crookedly, apparently surprised at how easy that had gone. It was almost as if he was holding his son for the first time ever. While she knew it was not the case, John seemed much more relaxed in that moment, almost as if he was holding her children whom he had a great relationship since their births.

“I… how did you…”

Cady smiled, snuggling more with Pete, “I did nothing. This is all you, John.”

He grinned, “I… this is… thank you, Cade. Thank you.”