Drabbles & One Shots

Drabbles & One Shots

Daryl Dixon x Reader Masterlist

Daryl Dixon x Carol Peletier

Incorrect Quotes Collection

Daryl Dixon Incorrect Quotes 1

Daryl Dixon Incorrect Quotes 2

Series

The Dixon Chronicles

And Baby Makes Three

Blood Ties

In Progress

Currently writing:

Blood Ties Chapter 10

Daryl x Reader Whump One-Shot

Coming Soon:

The Dixon Chronicles Chapter 9

Caryl Commonwealth One - Shot

Daryl x Reader Commonwealth One-Shot

Daryl × Reader Whump One-Shot

Daryl x Reader Smut One-Shot

Daryl x Reader Yule/Christmas One-Shot

Events

Whumptober 2023 Masterlist

Requests

Request Status: Closed

Request Info

Taglists

Click here to be added to a taglist.

•I’m older than 20, younger than 50

•I am a DV and SA survivor

•I use writing as an outlet and genuinely love it but sometimes it makes me want to rip my hair out

•I have PTSD, severe anxiety disorder, severe depressive disorder, bipolar 2 disorder, phobia disorder

•I am socially awkward

•I am vertically challenged

•I absolutely adore Norman Reedus

•My best friend is a three-legged Boxer

•My soulmate is a 35lb pit bull mix

•I am a notorious people pleaser

•I want to make millions of friends and be terrified to interact with them

•I am ridiculously forgetful

•I get overwhelmed quite easily

divider by @firefly-graphics

Alibi Masterlist

Pairing- Thomas Shelby and Reader

One two three four five six

Complete

yes, Joel finding Ellie after David ™️ has been gif-ed approximately 1 billion times. here's your excuse to look at it again.

I still can't believe they pulled this off so impactfully. Pedro and Bella's performances here are so affecting that they kinda hurt to look at.

The fear on Ellie's face, and in her eyes, is genuinely upsetting. Joel is so terrified and desperate and soft with her. All the walls are down. It's so fucking good.

The hug. They both believed they'd lost each other.

The love and pain that rolls over Joel's face as he holds her. The watch.

The way he falls right back into Dad mode, because he's Joel, and his kid isn't wearing a coat outside in the winter, and it's all he can do.

He tucks her against him, safe under his arm, and she just lets herself be guided - in shock, clearly, but also with Joel again, so she can finally let go. She knows he'll take care of her.

They're both hurt and weak and starving and traumatized, but they have each other again.

And the thing is, as much as I love the gifs of this scene because it lets me appreciate and relive all of these tiny moments and expressions... it's nothing compared to the actual scene.

The sound is such a huge part of this moment - Ellie's screams and whimpers, the soft noises of fear that Joel lets out as he watches her reaction, his voice as he tries to calm her.... in the words of some of my wise TLOU fandom friends... HAISJBFKHJSDFBSD

brb gonna go watch this scene again

A Gentle Warning

Pairing - Thomas Shelby and Wife Reader

Request from @crispynutella

I’ve always wanted to read something about the reader being Tommy’s wife during the whole Grace season 1 arc. Like Grace would be trying to get closer to him but Tommy is not allowing it because he has a wife that he is head over heels for. Jealous reader but quiet version maybe?

Feeling Tommy press a kiss to your head, you dragged your eyes away from the numbers. Offering him a smile, he was fixing his hat on top of his head. He liked it to sit just right, pulling on his leather gloves. He bent again, to press a kiss to your lips. Catching his hand, you pulled him closer.

"Bloody hell, you two are putting me off my fish paste sandwich," Arthur bellowed, with a mouthful of food. Proceeding to wipe the crumbs from his shirt, onto the floor.

"Who even eats fish paste? The war is over remember, Arthur," you teased, letting Tommy pull you to standing.

"Nothing wrong with this, Y/n. Done me no harm, growing up," he sniffed, taking a swig from his hip flask.

Slipping his office key into your pocket, Tommy brushed a loose curl from your forehead. "Can you make sure that's locked, ey?" His tongue ran across his lips, "I have a meeting at the yard, then I will meet you at The Garrison?"

Checking the time, on Tommy's pocket watch you leant against him. "I should be about an hour, I just want to double check the takings," you gestured with your eyes towards Arthur. He was taking another large swig from his flask.

"That's my girl, ey," he mused, leaning closer to your ear. "Might have something waiting for you at home,"

"Might?" you asked, face lighting up, “Like what?”

Grinning to himself, he winked while walking away. “Make sure you walk Y/n to the pub, and cut down on the booze, ey,” he warned Arthur, receiving a grumble in reply.

Watching your husband go, you felt your usual pang of worry. Plus, you knew that would only increase when you got to The Garrison. The new bloody barmaid was all over him, like a fly on shit. You could see straight through her. She wanted him. She practically drooled, when she looked at him.

“That a no, then?” You heard Arthur ask, clearly waiting for an answer.

"Hmm?" you asked, snapping out of your daydream.

"You don't want a swig?" Arthur chuckled to himself, watching you shake your head going back to work.

Reaching the pub over an hour later, you could hear the rest of the family in the snug. Grace no where to be seen. Good. There was only so much of her ogling your husband, you would accept. Arthur held open the door, for you. The whole room fell silent.

Polly and Tommy looking at you, guilt across their face.

“Don’t stop gossiping, just because we have arrived,” you joked, wondering if they had been discussing you or Arthur.

“Just business, love,” Tommy lied, patting the seat next to him. Polly shook her head, lighting a cigarette. You could practically see the anger, oozing out of her. What had Tommy done this time?

“Here you go, Mr Shelby,” you heard, here she was the blonde tart. Placing the drinks onto the table, she smiled at Tommy. A hint of a blush forming on her cheeks. "Let me know if you need anything else," Shooting you a quick look, she reversed out of the room.

Feeling Tommy rest his hand on your knee, you scooted closer to him. He was actually oblivious to Grace's advances. You had observed him, when she was around. He hardly glanced in her direction. But maybe, that was when you were here?

The more you thought about it, the angrier you felt.

"I love you in this dress," Tommy grinned, brushing his fingers over the material. Tilting his head to the side, he pressed his lips against yours. "Was thinking we could go to London for the night, before Christmas? Just us, hmm?"

"I would like that," you beamed, interlacing your hand in his.

"You sure you have time for that, Thomas?" Polly asked, her dark eyes narrowing. "You have a lot to deal with here?"

"And it will all be dealt with in good time, Pol," he countered back, his body tensing.

Standing, you brushed your dress down. "Just nipping to the bathroom," This was your opportunity, Tommy distracted with his family. The pub was relatively quiet. Leaving the snug, your eyes searched for her.

Where the hell was she?

You sashayed across the wooden floor, your heels clicking as you went. The cellar? Tiptoeing down, your adrenaline was racing through your body. You had no plan, of what you were even going to say. Grace was balancing three bottles of whiskey in her arms, when she noticed you.

"Ah, Mrs Shelby, is everything ok?" she asked, in her sickly sweet voice.

Slightly pouting, you debated her question, while leaning against the wall. "Hmm, you tell me Grace?" You purposely spoke slowly, enjoying watching her squirm.

Blinking rapidly, she looked towards the staircase. Panic showing on her face. "I.. I don't understand, Mrs Shelby," Grace took a step back.

Sighing, you held out your left hand. Two gold rings sat upon your third finger. One with a diamond, Mrs Shelby yes that was you. "See this ring?" you asked, showing her, as you slowly approached. "You know what that means?"

Swallowing deeply, Grace nodded. "Yes,"

"Tell me," you smirked at her. "Tell me what you think?"

"That you are married," she responded, glancing upstairs again. Could she make a run for it?

"No need to be nervous," you chuckled, "We are just chatting, just two ladies having a chat. But, yes, you are correct, it does mean that," You were now centimetres, away from her. "So stay the fuck away from my husband, don't look at him, don't talk to him, got it?"

Nodding profusely, you noticed her breathing was shallow. "Yes,"

Looking her up and down, you smiled sweetly. "Good, I will only warn you once," Pushing the whiskey from her arms, you watched it clatter onto the floor. Smashing into smithereens, all over her clothes.

"Oops," you shrugged, walking back upstairs.

Entering the snug again, they all turned to look up at you. "Where have you been, Y/n Shelby?" Polly asked, a knowing look on her face. Sitting back down, you let Tommy wrap his arm around your shoulders.

"Oh, just chatting to the barmaid," you answered casually, leaning to pick your drink up.

"You wanna go home, love?" Tommy asked, stubbing out his cigarette. Totally oblivious, to what you had done. But, Polly knew you too well.

"Yeah, why not? I've finished here," you smiled, looking through the window of the snug. Grace staring back at you, wiping the whiskey from her dress.

Saying your goodbyes, Tommy held open the door for you. Pressing a kiss to your cheek. "Ready for your present now?" he asked quietly, voice rumbling against your ear.

"More than ready," you answered, not taking your eyes of Grace. "Goodnight Grace," you called over your shoulder, letting Tommy take your hand to lead you home.

Tags-@kaybeeboop @cloudofdisney - @romanogersendgame @loveableasshole @goldensunflowe-r @captivatedbycillianmurphy @namelesslosers @lauren-raines-x @katsav17 @answer-the-sirens @vxrixnt@kathrinemelissa @datewithgianni @geminiwolves @lyarr24 @ysmmsy @sixbillionpieces @morgana-olson @mysticaldeanvoidhorse @dolllol2405 @nikkialex @padfootdaredmetoo @cheekybluefox @stevie75 @fairy-witch-bitch @breely1284 @american-sataness @blyanyan @peaky-cillian @cevans-winchester @shadow-hunters-lover @look-at-the-soul @livelifewondering @duckybird101 @watercolorskyy @lespendy @raychhh @dressedinpoetrysblog @cillmequick @everyonesawhore @castellandiangelo@midnightmagpiemama @thenattitude @forgottenpeakywriter @elenavampire21 @angelic-kisses13 @cljordan-imperium @peakyscillian @pono-pura-vida @already-broken144 @muhahaha303@kmc1989 @lilorphanann @amberpanda99 @bernelflo @trixie23 @cilloak @globetrotter28 @in0320 @laylasbunbunny @lau219 @surfin-the-sun @fiokw @brummiereader

Masterlist -

In This Together - Thomas Shelby

P 1 P2 P3 P4 P5 P6 P 7 P8 P9 P10 P11 P12 P13 P14 P15 P 16 P17 P18 P19 P20 p21 P22 P23 P24 P25 P26 P27 P28 P29 P 30 p31 P32 P33 P34 P35 P36 P37 P38 P39 P40 p41 P42 P43 P44 P45 P46 P47 Part 48 Part 49 Part 50 Part 51 Part 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89

No Son Of Mine (One Shot)

Summary: Justice had finally been served in the wake of John's death. But with all acts of violence comes consequences, one Tommy must face when his trusted friend Johnny dogs stumbles upon the now orphaned baby of the traitor and his wife he and Arthur had both murdered in cold blood all in the name or revenge. With no child of their own and Graces refusal to send him to the orphanage, Tommy begrudgingly takes the child into his care. Will Tommy ever show young Oliver the love of a father he deserves? Or will he continue to see him as nothing but a burden the heavens had cruelly punished him with?

Warnings: Language, mentions of murder, mentions of blood, angst, fluff

Authors note: A lovely reader of mine popped into my messages and kindly asked me if I could write this story for them. I'm sorry for the long delay hun, I can only blame my procrastinating brain for my tardiness. Anyway, I hope i did your prompt justice. Enjoy!

"Right, we done?" Tommy said raising a brow as he wiped the blood that had splattered onto to his crisp white evening shirt looking to his brother Arthur nodding his head in response, his chest heaving up and down as he brushed his bloody hands through his hair, both having been sidetracked from the nights festivities.

" Fucking scum" Arthur sniffed wiping his mouth with the back of his hand as he gave one last kick to the lifeless body at his feet. A cascade of events since John's death had led up to this very day, and Tommy and Arthur both simultaneously agreed without the need of words that justice had finally been served. Luca Changretta had been dead for almost a fortnight, the vendetta was over for all but the two surviving older brothers. That was until tonight when both Arthur and Tommy were unexpectedly called away to the news that Johnny dogs had found exactly who they'd been looking for. The traitor, the informer, the bastard that had given John's address to the Italians. A Peaky Blinder, one of their very own men.

" What about her?" Arthur spat a splutter of saliva laced with blood to the ground, the result of one lucky punch from the chancer that had tried his luck with the towering gangster. He'd put up a decent fight, one Arthur enjoyed watching before his patience grew thin and he pummeled his fist into him, each snap and break of his bloody face crumbling into something unrecognizable before being shot point-blank in the head. No one wanting or willing to hold him back. Not even Tommy. No forgiveness was given that dark night, only the sweet mercy met at the end of the barrel of a gun.

" Collateral" Tommy replied as he rubbed a cigarette across his lips not giving the nights events one ounce of remorse. This was for John after all.

" Collateral?" Arthur sniffed feeling a pang of guilt hit his stomach. Women and children were not to be harmed, an unspoken agreement before time in all dealings in war between men.

" Yes Arthur, fucking collateral alright?" Tommy snapped as he marched over to his brother whose eyes hadn't left those of the lifeless woman laid on the muddied ground below him " She ran into the line of fire brother. She all but killed herself" Tommy finished growing impatient with Arthur's weighing guilt. The last thing he needed was his number one soldier to be hit with a moral compass.

" Lads, we've got ourselves a wee problem" Johnny rushed over breathless as he loosened the neckerchief from the vein pumping angrily on the side of his neck. Fuck sake, Tommy thought to himself as he threw his cigarette to the ground. Things could never go smoothly, as smoothly as murder could go that was.

" What kinda problem?" Tommy replied as he and Arthur followed him into the small bedsit from the courtyard that two dead bodies had yet to be disposed of. The commotion resulting in the curiosity and twitching of the neighbours curtains, not one of them daring to or even contemplating in the slightest to inform any person of authority. Who would they go to? The police? The mere thought was laughable.

"Just a small one" Johnny replied taking two steps at a time up the rickety wooden stairs elaborating no further on what exactly had thrown a spanner into the works.

"A small problem Johnny eh? That's a big fucking problem!" Tommy ranted shaking his head as the three men entered the flat met with the sound of a newborn baby wailing in his woven bassinet, his bottom lip wobbling with each cry that furiously left his little lungs.

"Well he's small ain't he?" Johnny replied as he tilted his head looking down at the baby boy bundled in a white knitted blanket. You'd think with the the small army of children Johnny had fathered he'd be in his element. But that couldn't be further from the truth. Johnny was a natural with children, but a natural with children that had been weened, potty trained, and able enough to drive a four wheeled vehicle and shoe a horse. In basic terms, teenagers. But nonetheless wee babbies in his eyes. Newborns were all but a loud messy mystery to him.

" Jesus fucking Christ..." Tommy huffed pinching his brow as his mind frantically tried to come up with a solution as to what in the hell he was going to do now.

" Bloody hell, bloody fucking hell!" Arthur bellowed as he kicked the chair beside him, the gravity of what they had just gone hitting him far more than any sin from the long list he had committed in the past. They had made a child an orphan, and Arthur's regret and new-found faith in the almighty was about to turn into a furious rage of self-inflicted guilt.

" Hey, hey!" Tommy said cupping Arthur's head in his hands in a vice grip, trying to snap him from the pit he was intent on falling in. " Johnny take the child and go start the car" Tommy said loosening his hands as Arthur's head cast down with shame at his sudden outburst. No reading of scriptures would ever be able to tame the raging fury from igniting within him at any given moment, no matter how hard he tried. " And Johnny, light a fire. Just as we did for John" Tommy finished reminding Arthur who this was for, who they were avenging.

" He won't quit!" Arthur panicked as he held the baby in the back seat of the car, fumbling with the hand stitched blanket as Tommy drove full speed down the country lane back to Arrow house were the night of meeting with dignitaries was surely over.

" He ain't a bloody chicken is he?" Johnny said as he reached over from the passengers seat taking the bundled up child into his arms. " Like this, look" Johnny added resting the baby's head on his shoulder as he silently prayed to every ancestor to take pity on him, promising them that the next child to be birthed with his last name he'd be the epitome of a modern father to.

" Shut him up Johnny!" Tommy shouted, his jaw clenched at the increased wailing in his ear, his nerves on edge by the constant reminder of the nights events he now had to deal with as he slammed his foot down on the pedal with Arrow house in sight.

"Grace!" Tommy's voice bellowed through the walls of the their house. Every guest had already left, the grand entrance cleared of tables of the most prestigious of all champagnes imported from France mere hours ago. A night of free food, free booze and music in return for them delving into their pockets. But with the host having been otherwise occupied for most of the evening it was a night wasted, one he would begrudgingly have to endure for a second time.

" Tommy..." Grace said as she hurried down the stairs pulling her ivory night gown around her as she watched Tommy pace back and forth with a cigarette hanging from his lips in the grand hallway.

" Here. You wanted a baby, now you have one" Tommy said as he took the child from Johnny's arms placing him into hers before storming off to his office and slamming the door shut, leaving his wife wide-eyed in confusion as Johnny and Arthur stood there sheepishly without a word.

" Frances, some warm cows milk and another blanket please. That will have to do until the morning" she said softly not wanting to startle the child anymore as she gently hushed his sobs away into small whimpers and sniffles. " One of you going to tell me what happened?"

It had been an hour, three whiskys, a packet of cigarettes and the rubbing of one's brow back and forth as a pounding headache settled onto his forehead since Tommy had shut himself away in his office, shutting himself away from the consequences of the night.

" Tommy?" Graces voice quietly announced as she entered the room with the newborn bundled in her arms soundly asleep as a flash of love at seeing his wife in her element softened her husband's face. Her motherly instincts that had been waiting to be freed finally being put to use after the longing for her own child.

" I've rung the orphanage" Tommy bluntly replied, the sweet moment that had captured him bitterly snatched away by no one else but himself as he stubbed out his cigarette. " They're coming first thing tomorrow to..."

" The orphanage. Tommy..." Grace interrupted him, her angered voice raising just above a whisper in response before being cut off herself.

" I won't hear anymore on it Grace. He can't stay here, that's the end of it" Tommy stood up throwing his lighter on a stack of paperwork as he rested his hands on the mahogany desk in front of him, looming over the list of numbers he had been calling as he huffed out a cloud of smoke.

" The end of it is it Thomas?" Grace scoffed as she walked forward, her eyes narrowing in on her husband with every step she took. " You made this child an orphan, he is your responsibility now. That's the end of it" she said coming to a stop in front of his desk as her husbands jaw tightened at her words.

" What about John's kids eh? They've been made orphans, hm? Grace? " He said as his wife turned her back on him as she headed for the door, Tommy's raised voice enough to startle a small whimper of cries from the baby boy now waking up from a deep slumber.

" When will it end Tommy?" Grace said as she came to a stop at the door. Tommy's relentless need for revenge against anyone who had dared to cross him leaving a string of orphans, elderly burying their own children and children burying their own parents. " A son Tommy, isn't that what you've wanted? What we've wanted?" she sighed, a deep wave of sorrow filling her heart as she looked down at the sweet child in her arms, a child she had yearned for during the unforgiving nights she had held onto her husband as tears streamed her face. Loss after loss breaking her already shattered heart.

" He'll be no son of mine"

Six years later...

" Elbows off Oliver" Grace reprimanded with a small smile of affection at the breakfast table to the child who had grown into a dimpled cheeked young boy as she rubbed her swollen stomach.

" Yes mummy" he replied kicking his legs back and forth as he wiped his cheeks from the egg soldiers he had just enjoyed as Tommy eyed him over the newspaper in his hand, reaching to caress his wife's stomach.

" He'll be here soon" Grace smiled to her husband lacing her fingers between his as she glanced over at her son that had no knowledge of who his birth parents were or the night that had brought him into their life, never wanting to or willing to send him into turmoil with the truth at such a young age "A baby brother for you Oliver " she winked to him as he grinned from ear to ear at the idea of having a sibling all whilst trying to stack the remaining pieces of toast into a strong hold that would keep the soldiers from the fiery dragon his imagination had conjured up. His attempts rendered futile when his tower of toast came crashing down onto the recently polished floors.

" Grace..." Tommy huffed folding his newspaper in half throwing it on the table in front of him, his patience easily tested with anything the small boy did that caused the slightest of inconvenience.

" Don't play with your food darling" she corrected him as Oliver's eyes darted to his father and the irritation clearly expressed in the creases of his furrowed brow. "Go clean up those buttery cheeks before I leave ok?" She smiled as the boy nodded in response while sliding off his seat only to stand on the scattered toast below him, causing a mountain of crumbs and further mess.

" You heard your mother" Tommy huffed lighting a cigarette as he looked down at the waste of food and the disorder that came with the child that had created it. " Oliver" Tommy pinched his brow as the little boy stood there doe eyed looking up at him nervously through his lashes.

" Go on" Grace smiled reassuring him as he ran to the door. " You're to harsh with him, he's scared of you" Grace said snapping her head to Tommy as he left the room.

" He doesn't listen" Tommy stated as he stood up taking a drag of his cigarette as he watched the boy through the crack of the door running up the stairs. " Stands there looking gormless whenever I tell him to do something, just like his traitor father"

" Tommy!" Grace said as she put the breakfast dishware down, crashing them onto the table in one loud clatter of knives, forks and spoons as she hurried to shut the door. " Don't ever let him hear you talk like that!"

" Well maybe he should know, eh Grace ?" Tommy said coldly stubbing his cigarette out, the pain from his brothers death never fully grieved, only ever making itself clear through the unfair coldness he showed to the child his wife had lovingly taken in all those years ago, raising him solely on her own over the watchful eye of him always standing from afar.

" You'd like that wouldn't you Tommy? Wouldn't have to keep up your facade anymore" Grace replied as she walked around the table. " Your his father, he knows no different. Just like this one" she said resting her hand on her stomach. " You're breaking his heart Tommy" she said taking his hand trying to reason with his stubbornness and the relentless friction he had undoubtedly created in the house the three of them shared. "I'm going to miss my train" she sighed as she closed her hand around his placing a tender kiss to his lips before turning to leave as Tommy followed behind her, watching from the door as she knelt down to Oliver in the entryway.

" Can't i come?" the young boy sobbed as she brushed his tears from his rosy cheeks. " Please?" he sniffed turning to see Tommy leaning against the door frame watching from afar, always from afar.

" I'm sorry darling, not this time" she replied a look of concern in her eyes about leaving him alone with Tommy, silently wishing this one time he would push his unenthusiastic demeanor aside and at least try if not for her then the little boy who thought the world of him. The same little boy with a determination that matched the very man who would brush off any attempts he made to impress him. Tommy's hate for the man that had fathered him clouding every parental instinct in his body. " I'll bring you something back" she winked giving him a hug before she fixed her hat and hesitantly turned to the door, leaving the young boy standing in the hallway sobbing as Tommy cruelly turned his back on his tears and shut the dinning room door behind him.

" Dad, Johnny, watch me!" Oliver shouted as he precariously placed one foot in front of the other climbing the large oak tree shading the evening sun on the grounds of Arrow house as Tommy and Johnny dogs watched on from the patio door. The young boy hell-bent on getting to the very top after seeing his uncle Arthur climb the very same tree two weeks earlier as he watched on in awe.

"That 'a boy!" Johnny shouted back pulling his cigarette from his mouth as he waved back. " Found 'em Tom" he turned to Tommy in a hushed voice as he leaned in. "They live up north in Yorkshire, factory workers in the local pressing center. Dirt poor, drunk ol' man that beats his wife within an inch of her life and too many mouths to feed" Johnny added as he watched Tommy's eyes following Oliver's every move.

" He's gonna fucking fall" Tommy huffed under his breath as he stood up straight, already on guard for the inevitable. He never fucking listens, why would he never listen to him?

" Tom, you listening ?" Johnny said as he pulled the address of Oliver's uncle from his pocket. " Grace will never forgive you Tom, he's her whole world" Johnny added as Tommy took the piece of crumpled paper from him, the decision to send Oliver to his family having been made after the unexpected news of Grace's pregnancy, a decision made solely by him without her knowledge. It's better she didn't know, better for him that was. And when the day did come, he'd tell her his family claimed him back. What grounds would she have to fight them? She'd be distracted with the birth of their son, she'd forget...wouldn't she?

"Dad look!" Oliver shouted trying to get his attention, determined to show him how far he could climb, how he was as fearless as any other Shelby before he misplaced his foot and came tumbling down to the ground.

"Oliver!" Tommy shouted throwing his cigarette into the grass as he and Johnny ran over in a panic. " What did I tell you eh?! What did I fucking tell you?!" Tommy shouted, all words of expected comfort and love absent from his voice as anger and frustration took over.

"I'm sorry..." he sobbed looking up to his dad as Tommy removed his cap from his head, running his hands through his hair as he looked down at the bloody cut on his hand, every ounce of his being telling him to cradle the boy in his arms that knew nothing but him as his father.

" Ay, up you get" Johnny said helping him as he gave him a pat to his back. " Just a scratch Oliver ay? No broken bones. Nout to worry on. Ain't that right Tommy?" Johnny said in attempts to reassure the sobbing boy and Tommy who was about ready to snap again, his jaw tightened at the sight of Oliver's cheeks streamed with tears, muddy and red from the blow of the fall.

"Get inside" Tommy said placing his cap back on as he started marching back to the house, ignoring the pit of fear in his stomach at how things could have taken a turn for a worse under his watch of the boy Grace had entrusted him with. " Boys don't cry Oliver. Soldier up and wipe those tears" Tommy harshly stated as he left him and Johnny by themselves as he made his way to his office, shutting himself once again away from any more responsibility, anymore damage his presence caused.

" Come on lad" Johnny said putting his arm around him as Oliver sniffed back his tears feeling foolish that he had not only fallen but cried In front of his father, the man that never cried.

Sitting back in his leather chair Tommy rubbed the weight of the guilt that had settled on his forehead with the tips of his fingers as the night drew in, the soft hue from the crackling fire the only source of light in the blackened room he had locked himself in for the remainder of the evening. The impending birth of his child had unexpectedly thrown Tommy's thoughts into an uncomfortable disarray. Out of sight out of mind had been Tommy's only solution to the feelings that had started to arise in him that fatherhood had threatened, that fatherhood had been threatening him with for six years. Oliver was more like him than Tommy dared to admit. The child's strong will and refusal to listen one of his own cruel making. Why couldn't he love him like he already loved his unborn child? How long could he keep this up? Would he be that man, unashamedly favoring one child in front of the other? With too many questions dominating his thoughts and his wife's gentle voice absent to soothe the demons he had created for himself, Tommy did what he only knew how to do. Drink himself to the bottom of a whisky bottle. Heading up to the second floor of Arrow house with the finest bottle of Irish whisky in his hand he stopped at the top of the stairs, small whimpers and cries coming from the room at the end of the hallway capturing his attention. Oliver's room.

" Frances!" Tommy called out as he waited for the the housekeeper to deal with what he knew he couldn't. "Fuck sake" he huffed under his breath after waiting in place for someone to come before he found himself walking down the hallway to Oliver's room. There, with his knees curled up to his chest Tommy watched though the crack of the door as Oliver rubbed his hand back and forth over the bandage wrapped tightly around his injured wrist, his small frame illuminated by the cast of the gentle moonlight shining through his bedroom window. Running his hand down his face Tommy opened the door as Oliver quickly turned around pulling the blankets up to his chin.

"Oliver?" Tommy questioned placing the bottle of whisky on the side cabinet as he walked over. " Why aren't you asleep?" Tommy said more bluntly than he intended to as he stood by the bed, feeling a wave of unease wash over him as he noted the small blanket Oliver was clutching onto. The very same blanket he was wrapped in the night they had found him. Grace had kept it, something he would have known if he had ever sat and read him a bedtime story, if he had ever woke in the night to hush the nightmares away from his worried mind, if he had ever even entered his room in all of the six years he had lived under his roof." Let me see" Tommy said in a gentler tone as he sat beside him on the bed. " Oliver let me see" he said when no response came from the whimpers the small child was trying to stifle. Boys don't cry. " Please?" Tommy sighed resting his hand on the child's back as his head fell into his other, the guilt of six year of taking the life of his parents settling on his shoulders pushing him further into his elbow digging into his leg as his head grew heavy with regret. Sniffling, Oliver turned around with his hand out as Tommy cradled it gently in his own, the difference in size causing Tommy's throat to go dry. The hate for his father's betrayal that of a grown mans doing, not this young boys that Tommy had cruelly burdened him with for six years " First of many battle wounds eh?" Tommy smiled to the young boy as Oliver's face stayed unchanged, unresponsive to Tommy trying to ease his worry. Had he done this? Made the child is his care so frightened of him he couldn't even a coax a smile from him?

" Soldiers don't cry" Oliver said pulling his hand away, his bottom lip turning down at the thought he wasn't as strong as his father, a soldier like him.

" They do Oliver" Tommy said as his brows knitted together at the thought that young Oliver had taken his words to heart. What else had Tommy said in the past six years, what else had he unknowingly taught him?

" You said boys..."

" And I shouldn't have " Tommy answered before he could finish as the boy wiped his tears from his youthful cheeks whilst a small silence filled the room, the strain from their relationship left empty with nothing further to say as Tommy desperately tried to search for the comforting words he knew Oliver needed to hear. " You want your mum don't you?" Tommy said swallowing harshly as he turned his head to the rays of moonlight cast on the wooden floor " I'm sorry Oliver, I'm..." Tommy huffed pinching his brow as he clasped his hand around the child's shoulder. "... I'm not very good at this. You gotta help me out here. Will you help me?" he said as he gently squeezed his shoulder, rubbing his thumb back and forth as the barriers Tommy had kept up started to fall around him as he desperately scrambled to gain back the wasted years he had been adored, loved unconditionally, a love he had never once reciprocated . " Get some rest" Tommy sighed patting Oliver's shoulder, his plea for help left unanswered as he stood up when a small hand grabbed hold of him.

" Tell me a story, please?" Oliver asked as he sat up in his bed looking up to the man he had always looked up to, always waiting for an ounce of affection.

" That what your mum does eh?" Tommy replied as he sat back down, adjusting the covers lovingly around the boy, if not a little overly enthusiastically as Oliver was now in a tight cocoon of covers and blankets with his arms securely fastened by his sides. " A story..." Tommy mused aloud, his eyes looking up at the ceiling as his brain mulled over all the potential tales that could see him sleeping in the guest room for an undefined amount of time if Grace ever found out, when the corners of his mouth turned up into a smile you would think had never seen the light of day let alone witnessed by anyone but himself. Arthur had made him swear in blood to never mention the day his gangly legs had gotten in his way causing him to fall from would could have been the very same tree Oliver had fell from earlier that day in attempts impress a girl three decades ago. " Arthur made me swear never to tell anyone, but you won't tell him I told you eh? Tommy said as the boy nodded his head, understanding the severity of pinky swears and the fate of death if you ever spilled.

" Cross my heart" he nodded with all the seriousness he could muster as his little face twisted into a stern expression, a worthy match to Tommy's own infamous pout. He was a Shelby after all, Tommy thought to himself as his heart suddenly filled with pride.

" That's my boy" Tommy said as he turned to sit beside him, wrapping his arm around his shoulder as Oliver nestled into his side " My son eh? Tommy nudged him into his body as the boys eyes beamed up at his father's loving gaze. "My son..."