PUBLISHED: 15/05/2022

CONTRARY - FINN SHELBY X READER; PART 31

PUBLISHED: 03/07/2022

Part 1

MASTERLIST

TAGLIST

READER'S POV

"Are we there yet?" Saoirse asked for what must have been the fiftieth time.

Finn had bundled us into the car and blindfolded us, telling us he had a surprise in store.

Finn chuckled, and I felt the car slow to a stop, "We're here, but don't take off your blindfolds yet. I'll come around the car and guide you both to where I want you to stand, and you can take the blindfolds off then."

"Okay," I said, feeling my curiosity eat me from the inside out.

The car door opened, then closed. I listened closely and could hear Finn walk around the car, stopping at the passenger side door. He opened it, and placed a hand on my head, then grabbed my hand with the other.

"Here, now watch your head, I've got my hand over it but you could still bump it," He said as he helped me out of the car.

Once I was standing he helped Saoirse out, then shut the door. He grabbed my hand, and lead me along. He was probably guiding Saoirse with his other hand.

"Okay, I'm going to stop walking now," Finn warned us, and I slowed down, coming to a stop next to him.

He wrapped his arm around my waist.

"Now, take off your blindfolds," Finn ordered lightly, and I wasted no time reaching up and pulling the fabric off of my face.

My jaw dropped at the sight in front of us.

"Is it ours?" I asked, watching as Saoirse skipped up the path towards it.

"Yeah, it's ours. I decorated it myself." Finn confirmed, "Let's go have a tour."

He then lead me up the path, and up the stairs, stopping on the porch, which was a wraparound. Next to the door was a porch swing, and a wooden rocking chair. He stuck his hand into his pocket, producing a key, and unlocked the door to our new house.

"We've an basement, which is where our washer and dryer is, first floor, second floor, and an attic," Finn announced as we walked through the door, his arm still around my waist, "It's half an hour from town, so we'll leave a bit earlier than needed. We're up with the roosters, though, so I don't think it will be a problem."

I hummed in agreement as I looked around. Through the front door was a small mudroom. I took off my coat, and placed it on a hook, then kicked my shoes off, sitting them by the door. Finn followed my lead, then Saoirse did the same.

"Have you picked out rooms yet?" Saoirse questioned as Finn led us into the living room.

"Yes. Yours has a bed right under the window, so you can lay in the sun, and the bed has things each end, so it's like a hideaway," Finn informed Saoirse with a grin.

She started squealing and bouncing on her heels. She loved beds between things. It made her feel secure. It also created more floor space in the centre of the room, giving her a bit more room to run around.

I stood on the threshold of the living room floor, facing the room, and looked around it. The walls were a champagne colour, bar the wall which held the fireplace, that one was dark blue. I hoped the rest of the house had champagne walls. In the centre of the left wall, there was a big, grand fireplace with a black grate covering it. On the mantle there was a radio. It front of the fire was two armchairs and two couches, the couches not parallel to each other, instead coming towards each other at the end, so the furniture made a sort of 'v' shape. They were a rich red in colour, and looked quite comfy.

The window facing the front yard was a bay window, and on either sides of the window and seat were huge book shelves. They weren't all filled with books, it was mostly books, but there were also photographs, board games, and other trinkets there as well. In front of the bookcase on the left was another wooden rocking chair.

A huge green rug lined the floor behind the couches, and a brown coffee table sat on top of it. Surrounding the coffee table were more rich red couches and armchairs, a couch on each longer side of the table, and an armchair on the shorter sides.

In the far corner of the room there was an upstanding piano, and some guitars and ukuleles. My fingers immediately itched for the string instruments. I loved playing them. I hadn't even had time to think about them since I got married to Finn, too preoccupied with everything else.

There was a door next to them. I assumed it was the one for the basement.

"You play instruments?" I questioned my husband, and he shook his head.

"No. Bonnie told me you played them," Finn informed me as he led us through the door on the right wall of the room.

I noticed a staircase in the corner of the living room, but I was content exploring the first floor for now.

We ended up in a hallway. He showed us the room adjacent to the living room. The kitchen, which also doubled as a dining room, with a door in the corner at the edge of the bench that held the sink that I thought would be a pantry. We had our kitchen bench on the right side of the room, the sink under the window, and an island next to it, which was practical. The kitchen half of the room was raised higher than the dining room half, having a small step leading up to it.

We had our dining table on the other side of the room. I noticed that the kitchen had linoleum flooring, and the dining room had wood, just like the living room. I had a suspicion that the rest of the house pile be wood flooring. The dining table and chairs was the same colour brown as our coffee tables. On the other side of the dining table was a fireplace, although not as big as the one in the living room.

Finn showed us the next room, which was an office with two desks. One for me and him. This room also had a fireplace. In between the office and the kitchen was  a small hallway with a door leading out to the porch.

The door across the hall to the office was our first guest bedroom. It had a king sized bed, a bedside table either side of the bed, a dresser, and a wardrobe along the wall that held the door. A fireplace was along the left side of the room, across from the bed. There was a window across from us. Finn told me that this was the smallest bedroom, and that the other guest bedroom upstairs was exactly the same, just a bit bigger, so we didn't have to bother going in there. The door at the end of the hallway was a guest bathroom. We backtracked down the hallway and walked up the staircase in the corner of the living room, and ended up facing down another hallway.

The first door on our right was the next guest bedroom. We didn't bother going in there. The next door on our right was Saoirse's room, the walls a plain white.

"I thought we could paint it together, have a spot of fun," Finn announced as he turned on the lights, and Saoirse said something in agreement as she walked over and laid on her bed, fiddling with the bottom of her curtains that covered the window.

Her bed had a ceiling to floor bookcase at the foot end, which had little toys like dolls and stuffed animals on it as well as books. She had a ceiling to floor wardrobe at the head of her bed. Her bed had little square shelves under it, which were empty. She'd probably put stuff in there. She was like me, loved collecting little knickknacks and trinkets. The bed also had a curtain in front of it, suspended from the ceiling, so she could draw it and be separated from the rest of the room if she was on her bed. On the floor next to her bed was a light blue rug which looked soft to the touch.

I walked into the room, dawdling around it. Next to the wardrobe, in the corner, was a light blue screen, for privacy when changing. Straight across from the door was a bench hung from the white ceiling, fake vines and fairy lights wrapped around the chains that suspended it from the ceiling. She had a white vanity next to it, with a little blue puff of a stool in front of it. She had a dresser and wardrobe along the same wall that the door sat on. There was a fireplace along the right wall, adjacent to the bed. The thing that surprised me the most, however, was that in the middle of the room, sitting on a blue pedestal, was a tiny carousel.

"Oh. My. God. You spoiled her," I accused Finn as I came back and stood next to him, making him grin.

"Nothing wrong with that, aye, Sersh?" Finn said, looking over at my sister.

"Nuh," She agreed with him, making me roll my eyes.

No wonder Finn was the fucking favourite uncle, he always spoiled the kids. I was just as bad, but I never did anything as big as this.

"Go sit on a horse," Finn said, nodding towards the carousel.

She wasted no time doing so.

"Oh Finn, it's not fully functional, is it?" I questioned, looking at my husband who was already crossing the room and flipping a switch on the bottom of the pedestal that held the carousel.

"It's fully functional," Finn said in a reassuring tone as the lights at the top lit up, and the horse that Saoirse was on jolted to life.

"Finn, what the fuck, what if that blows the power in the house," I demanded, watching as my sister rode her three horse carousel with absolute joy.

"Don't worry, I've fixed all of that, the bloke assured me it wouldn't happen," Finn said with confidence, and I gave my husband a look that said 'really?'.

"She'll have a go on it for a bit then she'll forget all about it, (Y/N), honest. And if it blows the power in the house you can say I told you so," Finn sighed, making me grin.

"And you'll be sleeping on the couch until I say otherwise," I added, making his jaw drop.

"Them's the rules," I told my husband, who rolled his eyes and nodded.

"At the end of the hall is a guest bathroom." Finn informed me, and walked across the hall and grabbed a stick with a hook on the end that was sitting next to the door that I assumed led to our bedroom.

He reached up and hooked it into a loop on the ceiling, and pulled, making a set of stairs come down.

"Attic. It's empty, but you can still have a look." Finn said, and I climbed up the stairs, just enough that I could poke my head up past the roof and see into the ceiling.

It had guardrails along the hole that the stairs came out of, and a big, circular window behind me and in front of me. I hummed and walked back down. Finn grabbed the bottom of the stairs and pushed them up, making them disappear back into the ceiling.

He put the stick down, and I looked over at Saoirse who was now looking at her bookshelf, grabbing a stuffed tiger, a bee, a turtle, and a butterfly down. Tiger, Turtle, Bee, Butterfly. The nicknames Dad gave us because of our favourite colours.

"You remembered," I said softly, looking over at Finn.

He looked away sheepishly. I could've kissed him there and then.

"Do you think she'll like it?" Finn asked quietly, and I could hear the worry in his tone.

I looked over at my husband, and placed my hand on his cheek, gently guiding his face so he was looking at me.

"Finn. She'll love it. You did absolutely fucking amazing." I said softly, then leaned up and kissed his cheek, "You've put so much thought into it."

When I removed my hand from his face he cracked a grin, and placed his hand on the knob of the closed door next to us.

"Our room, love." He announced, and opened the door.

The first thing I noticed was that we had a darker yellow on our bedroom wall, compared to the rest of the house.

To my left was a fireplace, with a door on either side.

"Door next to the window is a walk in wardrobe, door just next to us is an en-suite," Finn informed me as I walked into the room.

A white rug sat in the middle of the floor. A king sized four poster sat along the right wall, in the centre of the wall with a bedside table either side. On the wall in front of us was a window, and in front of that window sat a vanity. At the end of the bed was a rectangular ottoman. I noticed another wooden rocking chair in the left corner. Finn's side of the bed.

I headed into our en-suite. The tiles were white and lemon yellow. We had a big claw foot tub, and a big shower, the glass surrounding the mirror was reflective. In the corner, across from the tub, was a sink and mirror, a small bin sitting next to it. I looked behind the door, and there was our toilet.

I hummed in approval as I came back out to Finn, standing in front of him and wrapping my arms around his neck. He immediately placed his hands on my waist.

"You, Mr. Shelby, have outdone yourself," I mused, looking up at my husband.

"Does that mean we can christen the house as my reward?" He asked cheekily, making me roll my eyes but smile.

"Okay, but I'm being serious again. We've a stable behind the house, and a chicken coop in the backyard. Behind the tree line to the left of the house is a river, a clean one, so Aberama and the rest can stop there when they please." Finn informed me, then we heard a horn beep.

He walked over to the window and looked, "It's Ezzie and Isiah dropping off the paint."

I quickly made my way over to the window, and saw the pair carrying a tin of paint each. I stuck my middle finger up at Ezzie through the glass. She did the same once she saw me. I laughed and ran downstairs, nearly running into Ezzie as my feet hit the mud room floor.

"That happy to see us?" Isiah joked, and I shook my head.

"Happy to see the paint. Hey, did you know that Finn put a fucking fully functional three horse carousel in Saoirse's room?" I asked the pair.

Ezzie looked shocked but Isiah looked at Finn.

"Told you the girls wouldn't agree," Isiah sighed dramatically, which made Ezzie and I roll our eyes.

"You can carry this up to Sersh's room now," Ezzie told Isiah, handing him the paint tin, "I'll be out on the porch, waiting."

I started laughing at him as Ezzie spun on her heel and left through the front door, making him narrow his eyes at me.

"These are actually heavy," Isiah whined, holding one out for me to take.

"Oh, poor Isiah, being asked to do physical labour," I mocked, but took the paint tin anyway.

I tried not to show the boys that the tin was, in fact, quite heavy. I walked up the stairs and into Saoirse's room, Isiah hot on my tail.

"Hiya, Sersh." Isiah greeted, and Saoirse got off of the carousel, flipping the switch to turn it off, and ran over to Isiah, giving him a hug.

"Blue paint for your room, little Miss," I said as we placed the tins on the floor.

"Yay!" Saoirse squealed, bouncing up and down on the spot.

Isiah leaned back and looked down the hall, then faced us, grabbing our shoulders and bringing us closer, so we were huddled together.

"Now, I've got to ask you something," Isiah whispered seriously, eyes darting between us.

I had a strong suspicion of what direction this conversation was going in.

"I've gotten permission from Aberama, and Bonnie, and now all I need is you two's permission," He added, making Saoirse scrunch her nose up in confusion.

"Permission for what?" She asked, in a voice that definitely wasn't a whisper, making Isiah and I shush her.

"Permission for what?" She repeated, this time in a whisper.

"I want to ask you two for permission to propose to Esmeralda," Isiah stated, eyes darting between us.

"You have mine," I said, and he cracked a grin.

"Just don't break her heart. Do that and I'll break both your legs, and then some," I added, making him nod.

I was joking. Mostly.

"You can marry my sister, but if you hurt her, I'll tell our Aunt Cass, who'll tell her friend, Uncle Ben. Uncle Ben was a sniper in the war." Saoirse whispered with a straight face, and I bit back a chuckle at Isiah's expression as he realised the meaning behind my sister's words.

"Will this uncle Ben shoot me if I fu-stuff up?" Isiah asked, sounding a bit scared.

"Right between the eyes like he did to the enemies of the Crown," Saoirse hissed, narrowing her eyes at Isiah.

Well, she sure fucking picked up Dad's dramatic flair.

"Alright," Isiah said,  letting us go, "I've got to go now. No telling anyone, alright?"

"Telling anyone what?" I replied, tilting my head in mock confusion, making him smile.

He then walked down the stairs. I could hear him tell Finn that he'd be over for a visit soon. I popped my head out of the doorway, and Finn was coming up the stairs, holding paintbrushes in one hand, and a bag in the other. I could see a sleeve hanging out of the top.

"Ready to paint?" He asked, and I grinned.

"I was born ready," I replied with a smirk.

"What Bee said," Saoirse added, making me chuckle.

•••

"Well then. This was a smart idea," I snarked, looking down at my clothes that were now covered in light blue paint.

"Very smart," Finn agreed, nudging Saoirse, who was  covered from her neck down with paint.

"I wanna do it again!" She yelled, and I gave her a stern look.

"Go and get into that shower. Throw your clothes into the tub, I'll clean them later." I commanded her, and she nodded, ambling off into the bathroom next to her room.

We had painted her walls successfully, but then had a paint fight, started by Saoirse 'accidentally' flicking paint onto Finn. Finn, the overgrown fucking five year old he is, flicked paint back at her, then Saoirse flicked paint on me, and it was a blue blur after that.

"Do I have any in my hair?" I asked Finn, not wanting to wash it out if there was.

He inspected my hair, up in the messy bun.

"No, but there some right — there." He replied, rubbing his finger along my cheek.

I rolled my eyes, making him chuckle. I looked back at him. The low hanging sun filtering through the window, along with the blue paint under his eyes, made his eyes look a glorious blue, like the ocean. My eyes wandered over his face, and settled on his lips.

"(Y/N)," He said lowly, stepping closer to me and placing his hands on my waist.

My heartbeat sped up at the contact.

My eyes flicked back up to meet his, which were dark like they were last night as he went to kiss me.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, "I know."

And that was all it took for him to lean down and brush his lips against mine, testing the waters. My heart skipped a beat as I shifted up on the tips of my toes and grabbed his shirt, pulling him down so I could place my lips on his properly.

Butterflies erupted in my stomach as one of his hands made its way around to the small of my back, and one came up to cradle my neck, gently.

His lips were soft against mine, moving slowly and delicately, as if he were scared to hurt me.

If I were to drop dead after kissing Finn, I'd die happy. In this very moment, nothing else mattered. Just this. Just him. Us. Together.

Finn pulled away, and rested his forehead on mine. I loosened my grip on his shirt, the left side still slippery with paint, so my hands were resting on the fabric instead of being scrunched up in it. Butterflies were going wild in my stomach.

"Fucking hell," He mumbled, his thumb rubbing circles on the side of my neck.

"That's how I feel," I murmured, feeling lightheaded.

"That's what all the girls say," Finn joked softly, making me snort.

"Keep telling yourself, that, Shelby." I replied quietly, making him chuckle.

"I've been waiting to do that for a very long time," Finn admitted, making my cheeks warm up.

"Me too," I confessed, making him grin.

My toes started hurting, so I shifted again so I was standing flat footed. Finn stepped back, dropping the hand that was on my neck down to his side, giving me a bit of breathing space, but still kept a hand on my waist. I looked at my husband, and brought my clean hand up and ran my fingers across my lips gently. I had just kissed Finn. And it was fucking amazing.

§§§

AHHHH THEY FINALLY KISSED!!

Also Esmeralda and Isiah 🥺🥺

Also: If I started writing one shots/taking requests from you guys for Peaky Blinder characters x reader would you guys like it or nah??

Love y'all ❤️

- Sunflower x

NEXT PART

Part 32

TAGLIST

@meadownicolee

@toothlessmcleod

@im-your-possession

@bethabear12

@paisley-37

@shelundeadxxxx

@bluehairdie

@krillfromsky

CONTRARY - FINN SHELBY X READER; PART 45

PUBLISHED: 22/07/2022

THIRD PERSON'S POV

Thomas Shelby and his elder brother Arthur strolled into the Garrison, which was empty. It wasn't opening time, yet. The morning sun was shining through the stained glass windows. Glass crunched under their feet as they walked, and surveyed their surroundings. It was like a whirlwind made it's way through there. Or a really bad bar fight. Arthur just hoped his kid brother wasn't involved in it.

Tommy made himself comfortable on a stool, which woke up the girl laying in a booth. Mary Bone looked over at the source of the noise, and gasped.

"Go home," Tommy commanded, making her grab her dress and cover herself with it for decency as she slipped her shoes on.

"Come here, you," Arthur demanded, walking over to a chair and grabbing the coat off of the back of it, "Put this on."

He held the coat out to her, and she grabbed it thankfully, slipping it over her petite frame.

"There you go. Look at that. Looks great on ya! Wrap up warm." Arthur said as she left the pub, hurrying out along the street.

Tommy looked at his peacefully asleep younger brother, clearly not pleased with the company he kept. He wondered if Finn's wife even knew he was friends with the girl in the brown coat. He was sure she only had a baby recently, too. It wouldn't hurt her to stay home with it.

Arthur grabbed a glass of water, putting ice from another glass into it, then hopped up onto the chair of the booth next to the one Finn was laid in, and poured the cold water and ice onto his brother, making Finn yelp and fly up, panting in surprise.

"Wake up," Arthur said by way of greeting, ignoring the way his brother looked at him as he hopped down, "Rise and shine."

Finn sighed and moved himself so he was sitting properly on the edge of the seat, "What are you doing here?"

"Wasting our fucking time on you," Tommy replied, ever the one for no nonsense.

Finn groaned as he rubbed his temples, trying to chase away a headache. Arthur handed his younger brother a glass of water, which he went to take a sip from as he stood up.

"Sit down, Finn," Tommy ordered his younger brother, "Sit down."

Finn sat back down, then Tommy stood up and stepped over to his brother.

"What do I have to do," He began, eyes trained on his curly haired brother, "To make you fucking listen to me?"

Arthur settled into the booth across from Finn.

"You took a bullet. You've been running around the streets with a fucking gun in your hand." Tommy added, one hand on the back of the booth behind Finn and the other on his hip so he didn't strangle his brother for his idiocy.

"Somebody has to." Finn defended himself, looking Tommy square in the eye.

Arthur fought back the urge to chuckle. Finn had definitely toughened up after he met you. He wouldn't have been able to look Tommy in the eye four years ago.

Tommy and Finn looked over at their older brother, who didn't hesitate with his reply.

"Finn, we've got people for that kind of work. Soldiers. Captains and corporals," Arthur explained, waving a hand around, making Finn clench his jaw as he looked at the window.

"Well then, what am I?" Finn questioned, looking back at his older brother, trying not to let the older two catch on to how badly he was craving for an answer to that question.

"'What am I?' Jesus Christ," Tommy said as he stood up straight, clearing his throat.

"Yeah, what am I, Tom? Huh?" Finn pushed his older brother, making Tommy look down at his younger brother, "I'm the brother you never got around to."

Finn put his glass of water onto the table, already done with the conversation and itching to be back home with you and the kids.

"You're a general, Finn." Tommy explained, his patience running out, "You understand? You're a fucking Shelby, so you're a general. When did you last see a general anywhere near the blood and the puke, eh?"

Finn nodded, taking in his brother's words.

"He's fucking right. That's what you are." Arthur added, moving out of the booth and going to stand next to Tommy, "So, on your feet, soldier. Come on, on your feet!"

Finn looked away from the pair in frustration.

"I thought you just said I was a general," Finn stated, looking at the pair, fighting a smirk.

He was right. He was the brother they never got around to. They loved him, he had no doubt about that, but he wasn't sure they liked him. Especially because they never knew what to do with him.

"I did just say you were," Arthur confirmed, then moved and grabbed Finn by the front of his singlet, "So, get on your fucking feet-"

"-Arthur." Tommy interjected, pushing his older brother back, "Finn. Finn. Look at this."

Once Finn looked at what his older brother was holding, Tommy continued.

"This is the bullet that Aberama Gold cut from you. First and last." Tommy declared, then flicked it up, Finn catching it.

"First and last," Tommy repeated, pointing at him, then walked away from his brother, going to the bar to get himself a drink.

Finn sighed as he stood up, hand clasped around the bullet. He brought it up to his chest, showing it to Arthur.

"Don't lose it," He instructed, and Finn nodded, tightening his grip on it.

Arthur clapped his brother on the shoulder, "Go and clean up. Put some clothes on. Nice suit."

Finn started walking off, glad that he kept spare clothes at the pub. You'd never know when you'd spill something on yourself.

"I've got some trouble that'll keep you out of trouble," Arthur called out after his brother, watching him as he swaggered off.

Finn quickly got dressed and walked back out to his brother, still tying his tie. He rarely tied his own tie nowadays, you did it before he left for work.

"Arthur, I'm gonna put that bullet on a necklace and wear it as a reminder." Finn announced as he walked over to him, then clapped his older brother on the shoulder, "Arthur?"

"I hear ya," Arthur confirmed, but he still looked out of it.

"You got trouble for me, then?" Finn asked in reply, leaning down so he was more eye level with his brother.

"Yeah," Arthur replied, sounding far away.

"Yeah?" Finn replied, then swatted his brother on the chest and walked to the door, ready to see what trouble was in store for him.

•••

You sat in your dad's vardo, feeling slightly worried. You had just woken up from a black cat dream. You looked down at the floor. Bonnie and Saoirse were still playing cards. You looked up at the clock. You had napped for a mere thirty minutes. Your father and Ezzie has probably started your dinner now.

Outside, around the fire, Aberama stoked it with a stick, kicking a log to see if it was burnt through yet. He heard his horse whinny, then a twig snap. He looked around, feeling slightly on edge. No one was supposed to know where he was camped, having to lay low after the last job he did.

"What is it, Da?" Ezzie asked softly, watching him as he looked over at the group of shrubs behind him, getting a funny feeling from them.

He ignored her, instead spinning around in his chair and getting up, standing to look at them properly. He took a few slow steps forward, then stopped, waiting to see if something would happen, although he wasn't sure of what he was waiting for.

The area around him went quiet, bar the sound of the fire. A gunshot ripped through the air, the bullet finding a home in Aberama's shoulder with enough force that it knocked him to the ground. The birds surrounding the area flew away, screeching and cawing as they did so.

"Dad!" Ezzie yelled, quickly going and kneeling on the ground next to her groaning father.

Bonnie heard the noise, and grabbed the rifle next to him.

"Stay here, stay hidden, stay quiet," He ordered you and Saoirse quickly, then rushed out of the vardo, leaving the door cracked open behind him.

You grabbed your handgun and crept over to the door, standing behind it and looking out of the window. It was stained a dark brown, so you were confident that whoever was out there wouldn't be able to see you. Saoirse hid under the bed at your orders, the skirt of the blanket hiding her.

You watched as Bonnie aimed the rifle at the group of men with shaky hands, knowing full well that he was outnumbered.

"Drop the pea shooter, son," One of the men commanded, and Bonnie slowly lowered it, then placed it on the ground as two men dragged a cross past him.

"A broken broom stops all Gypsy curses, Mr Gold." The one who seemed to be the leader said, then broke a broom over Aberama's shoulder, making him howl in pain.

Ezzie looked over at the men, her blue eyes wide with fear, then back down at her father, softly reassuring him that he would be fine. Bonnie looked at the pair worriedly, and prayed that the men wouldn't go into his Dad's vardo. One man went and put his foot on his father's neck, keeping him down, and one of the men holding a gun put it down and walked over to Ezzie, pulling her backwards by the hair and making her stand up, holding her. She thrashed in his grip, and one of the men holding a gun placed his on the ground, going and holding her back. Bonnie knew he wouldn't be able to pick his rifle up and shoot them all. He'd get killed first.

"Who the fuck are you?" Bonnie questioned after looking back at the group, his voice wobbling.

"Did you not hear my song?" The man asked, but didn't wait for an answer, "These gentlemen are the Billy Boys."

He then walked up to Bonnie, "And me?"

He then picked up the rifle Bonnie put down, "I'm Jimmy."

He hit Bonnie across the face with the butt of it, making you gasp softly.

"No! Fuck." Your father said, struggling under the man's foot to try and stand up.

"Good. Mouth broke so you can't talk." Jimmy said, watching as Bonnie looked back at him, the lower half of his face covered in blood, "But you don't need to. Your body will be the lesson."

Your eyes widened at that statement, and you gripped your gun tighter, ready to shoot if you needed.

"You work in a particular capacity for Mr Thomas Shelby OBE, am I right?" Jimmy continued, watching as Bonnie spit up blood and sniffled, staying silent.

"I heard you're a fighter," Jimmy stated, stepping closer to Bonnie, who pulled himself up to a kneel, "The best."

"But your fighting days are over." He finished, hitting him square in the face with the butt of the gun, making Ezzie scream for her younger brother and Aberama thrash under the man's shoe.

You grit yourself teeth so you didn't make a sound, and fought the urge to go comfort Saoirse, who you could hear sniffling from under the bed. She soon crawled over to you, standing up on the tips of her toes and looking out of the window.

Bonnie attempted to crawl away, Jimmy stalking behind him. You watched as the last man holding a gun slung it over his shoulder, and walked up behind Jimmy.

"Because I need Mr Shelby to understand," Jimmy stopped momentarily to kick Bonnie, "That his best,"

He pushed Bonnie back into a tree, "Is not ... good enough."

He threw off his cap, and head butted Bonnie fair in the nose, dazing him. He then let your brother go, watching as he stumbled to the ground. The other Billy Boys quickly picked Bonnie up, dragging him over to the cross that they had dragged with them. They strapped him onto it, and he was too dazed to fight back. You watched as they stood the cross up, and waited for the right moment to take a shot. You might get yourself killed while doing it, but at least it would give everyone else a chance.

Jimmy picked up his cap and put it on, then approached Bonnie on the cross. Ezzie thrashed hard enough that she freed herself from the grip of the men holding her, and scrambled over to her brother, only to get a bullet to the stomach from Jimmy's pistol, stopping her in her tracks. She flopped to the ground, holding a hand to her torso.

"Sersh, when I shoot this gun, I want you to run and grab one of the guns over there, but only use it if you have to," You whispered to your younger sister, knowing damn well she knew how to use one.

Your father wouldn't have any of his kids around the lifestyle he lived without them knowing how to wield guns and knives.

Jimmy turned back around, and put his pistol to Bonnie's chin.

"Farewell, fighter boy. You died well." He announced, and a gunshot sounded throughout the camp.

Jimmy screamed in pain, his pistol hitting the forest floor, blood spurting from his shoulder, and Saoirse ran, grabbing one of the guns. You one man fair in the forehead, and Saoirse plowed down two of them as you made your way over to her, grabbing the gun next to her. You shot both of the men next to Jimmy, but Jimmy wasted no time running off. You didn't care. He didn't have his gun with him.

"Saoirse, grab Flicker and ride him to the phone box, call someone!" You commanded your younger sister, making your way over to Ezzie, "Isiah, Finn, Tommy, fuck, even Curly, but call someone!"

Saoirse nodded, eyes wide and hands shaky, putting down the gun and stumbling over to your Father's horse, mounting him and speeding off. The phone box was only a short ride away, but you had a feeling it would take forever.

You put pressure on your sister's wound, listening to her breathe heavily. She was bleeding more than you thought she was. She'd be fine, though. Saoirse would call for help and help would come and Ezzie would be safe.

"It's just a little bit of blood, only more than a scratch," You reassured your older sister, your eyes filling with tears as you took in the scene around you, your brother hanging limply on the cross and your father sobbing on the ground, wondering where he went wrong, "Saoirse's probably calling for help and we'll get you to a hospital, and you and Bonnie and Dad will be fine, we can have tea at my house-"

"-Don't give me false hope," Your sister murmured, her eyes halfway closed as she made the effort to reach up and put a hand on your face.

You leaned into her touch, tears now rolling down your face.

"Oh, Ezzie — It's not meant for you," You whimpered, a sob wracking your body as you took off your coat with one hand, then pressed the fabric to her midriff, "I want my big sister to be okay. Bee needs her Turtle."

The world around you was blurry as you focused on talking to your sister as you helped an unconscious Bonnie down from the cross, rambling about how you'd make pancakes and make your own jam to put on it from wild berries, just like you did when you were younger, your father sobbing in the background. You just prayed Saoirse made it to the phone box okay.

§§§

A bit of an open ending because I'm still not sure if I want to kill anyone lol — I'm gonna be real with you all, in the early plots of this chapter, all of the Gold children bar (Y/N) died, then only Saoirse and Bonnie, then Esmeralda and Bonnie, then none of them, and now I'm still not sure lol.

Love y'all ❤️

- Sunflower x

TAGLIST

@meadownicolee

@toothlessmcleod

@im-your-possession

@bethabear12

@paisley-37

@shelundeadxxxx

@bluehairdie

@krillfromsky

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@jamieolivia27

CONTRARY - FINN SHELBY X READER; PART 7

PUBLISHED: 18/05/2022

!!FIRST PART HERE!!

Part 1

THIRD PERSON'S POV

(A/N: I haven't been to a wedding in yonks so this and the next chapter is me really just making stuff up as I go lmao)

Today was the anticipated day. The union between (Y/N) Gold and Finn Shelby. You had woken up a nervous wreck.

You hadn't even been able to eat anything, not even biscuits with your tea, something that made Esmeralda and Saoirse concerned — you had always had an ungodly amount of biscuits, at least four, whenever you had a cup of tea. Once, Esmeralda was sure she counted twelve on your saucer.

It was now eight in the morning, and your sisters were begging you to eat at least one mouthful of the feast Polly had cooked for you and your bridal party. You had all slept at your residence, while Finn and his groomsmen were getting ready at Tommy's.

You picked up a pancake, and took a small bite — it was fluffy and soft. You chewed it, and mindlessly began drumming your fingers on the tabletop.

"So, I'm walking down the aisle with Arthur, Tommy with Lizzie, Bonnie with Ada, and Isiah with Ezzie." Polly reminded the girls at the table, who all nodded.

"And I get to throw the flower petals!" Saoirse cheered, making Polly chuckle.

"Yes you do, my dear." Polly said with a smile towards the small girl, who was now playing with a doll.

"(Y/N), go shower, we leave in three hours!" Ezzie hissed, making you hurry on eating your pancake.

"And Finn will be here in two and a half to drop off your something new," Ada pointed out, making you curious.

Once you were done your pancake, you walked to the bathroom, and had a quick shower, washing your hair and body with some nice smelling shampoo, conditioner and body wash set Lizzie had gifted you. You trusted her, she seemed to know what the men liked. You also quickly went over your legs and underarms with a razor, and brushed your teeth. You weren't that cruel to make Finn kiss you with morning breath.

You hopped out of the shower, dried yourself and wrapped a towel around your body, then wrapped your hair up in another towel, this one being a microfiber one to help it dry quicker. You walked to your room, where Ezzie was sitting on the bed.

"You're putting on that set," Ezzie said with a stern look on her face.

You knew that look. That look was the one she gave when she meant something was final. The first and last time you disobeyed that look, you ended up with a rather nasty bruise in the shape of her paddle brush. You didn't want another, so you begrudgingly put on the set of lingerie you had bought yesterday.

"It's not like he's going to see it," You grumbled, trying — and failing — to clip up your bra behind you.

Ezzie came over and wordlessly helped you, then handed you a bottle of lotion. It looked as if it came from the same set as the shampoo, conditioner, and body wash, and as you opened the bottle and the smell hit your nose, your thoughts were confirmed.

You quickly put some lotion on, then put on your slip. You looked up at the clock.

Two hours left. You felt the pit in your stomach get deeper. What would happen after you and Finn officially got married? Would you continue on acting civil all your lives, never to love each other but being bound to each other for all eternity? Or would Tommy be kind enough to let you get with different people, and the marriage only be for show? It was all a big mess of confusion, and you hated it.

•••

"Your hair is going up today," Ezzie informed you casually, not bothering to look at you, making your heart stop.

"I can't do braids or anything," You said quietly, making Ezzie look at you.

"That's why I'll be doing it," She reassured, giving you a small smile, "It's only me."

You took a deep breath, but nodded. She was right. It was Ezzie. She wasn't going to hurt you.

"Come sit," She instructed, and you did so.

You handed her your hairbrush, and she started detangling your long, (H/C) locks, starting at the ends then moving up to the roots. Once your hair was knot free, she parted your hair in the usual spot.

In the reflection, you spotted Polly and your Dad come to stand in the doorway of your bedroom. The first thing Polly noticed as your sister started braiding your hair was how tightly you were gripping the legs of the vanity. Your knuckles were white. She noticed that you were sitting stiff as a board, as if getting ready to jump out of your chair at a moments' notice.

"Hi," You greeted your Dad softly, still unsure of whether you wanted to interact with him or not.

"Hello, Bee," Aberama replied, staying in the doorway, giving you a wide berth for your own peace of mind.

You grinned at the nickname. Your Dad had nicknamed all of you kids after something that was the colour of your favourite colour — you were Bee, Esmeralda was Turtle, Bonnie was Tiger, and Saoirse hadn't settled on a colour yet.

"You'd think her sister was about to murder her," Polly whispered to your Dad, who pursed his lips.

He sniffed and cleared his throat, "Marian, she — she would never let (Y/N) put her hair up, so it would get really knotted, I'm talking nearly matted, Polly — and then she would make (Y/N) sit as she would pull the brush through her hair and (Y/N)'s body would have no chance but to follow the brush and (Y/N) would be in so much pain and that slut would enjoy every minute of what she'd put my Bee through."

Polly put a hand to her mouth, horrified that someone could do that to their baby. She could never, ever imagine doing that to her Michael, or her Anna.

Aberama and Polly watched as Esmeralda carefully braided your hair into a crown, leaving wisps out to frame your face, then delicately put wildflowers into the braid.

Polly looked at the clock. One hour left. She quickly got the dress from your wardrobe, and Ezzie ushered you out of your seat, and Ezzie helped you into your dress. You weren't wearing shoes — high heels and yourself weren't the best of friends. You weren't even acquaintances.

•••

You were now pacing in your bedroom, waiting for Finn to come give you your something new. The pit in your stomach had gotten worse, and it was taking everything in you to not spit out your gum and start chewing your nails.

A knock sounded on your door. You stopped your pacing and spun around, facing the door. You took a deep, steadying breath.

"Come in," You called, your voice shaky.

The door opened, and there stood Finn Shelby.

You gasped softly. He walked in, shutting the door behind him. He looked a vision, standing there in his suit. You'd be lying if you said that you didn't find him attractive right now. You wouldn't mind someone painting a portrait of this moment in time so you could always look back at it, just to see this version of Finn again.

You realised you were staring, and quickly looked away.

Finn, however, was too busy admiring you to notice. This was the first time he had seen you with your hair up. You looked like some kind of angel, but not the ones he read about in the Bible with Jeremiah. The pretty kind. To him, in this moment, you looked divine.

"Hi, Finn," You said shyly, feeling awkward under his gaze.

"Hi, (Y/N)," Finn greeted, sounding breathless, "You look — amazing, honest."

"You don't look too bad yourself," You teased as you looked back at him.

He grinned, then remembered what he came for. He fished a small box out of his pocket.

"These are our something new." He explained as you walked closer to him.

He opened the box, revealing two silver pendants, each the shape of half a heart.

"They're beautiful," You stated, looking up at Finn.

He felt pleased that you liked it. He had out a lot of thought into it, and there wasn't really much good stuff a person could get in five days.

He gently grabbed the one with his initials out and handed it to you, "Yours. We wear each other's initials."

"Can you put it on me?" You asked, scared the clasp would get caught in your hair and you would ruin your sister's handiwork.

Finn nodded, swapping you the box for your necklace. He undid the clasp, and put it around your neck, then did it back up again. He saw your spine peeking out of the top of your dress, and couldn't resist softly dragging the tip of his index finger up it, which made you gasp and shiver.

"Sorry," He mumbled, not feeling sorry at all.

Your skin was soft. He wanted to feel it again someday. And, when he was this close, he could smell your perfume. He liked the smell of it. He’d have to buy you more.

"Would you like me to put yours on you?" You questioned, turning back around.

"Yeah, please," Finn replied, handing you the box.

You went and stood behind him, necklace in hand.

"Can you bend your knees a little?" You asked the brown haired boy — he was a little bit taller than you.

Finn did as you asked, and you put the necklace on him. He spotted your bridal bouquet on the vanity, Aberama's tie wrapped around it, and chuckled.

"What?" You demanded, peeking around him to look in the same direction.

"You have silver bells in your bouquet — Mistress Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow? With silver bells and cockle shells and pretty pairs all in a row," Finn recited, "You and Mary, you've both got silver bells and pretty maids both in a row and you're both contrary."

"I'm not contrary!" You snapped, frowning as Finn turned to face you, "I've got ... layers."

He nodded sagely, "Like an onion."

You gave him a funny look, "What the fuck are you comparing me to an onion for?"

"I don't know, the boys had fried ones for breakfast!" Finn defended, putting his hands up.

"Did you have any? I don't care that it's a wedding, I won't become lip locked with you if you've eaten onions this morning!" You threatened, jabbing a finger to his chest.

"I haven't!" Finn said truthfully, but you narrowed your eyes at him.

"Let me smell your breath," You commanded, and he  complied, breathing heavily your face.

"You're lucky," You warned after the minty breath entered your nose.

Finn chuckled, which made you realise how ridiculous you were being. You started giggling along with him, then the door was knocked upon.

"Finn's got to go!" Ada said through the door.

You looked at the door, then back at Finn.

"See you there," You said quietly, the magic of the previous moment gone as reality set back in.

Finn nodded, "See you there.”

He turned to walk out of the bedroom, and you had the urge to grab his hand to make him stop, but you ignored it. He exited the room, leaving you in silence once more.

§§§

THE NEXT CHAPTER IS THE WEDDING AHHHH — I apologise for not much Finn and reader interaction but eh

Love y’all ❤️

- Sunflower x

NEXT PART

Part 8

MASTERLIST

First time creating one, also on mobile so here we go!!

I also take requests for oneshots (other fandoms currently not listed but am in a lot of them)

PEAKY BLINDERS

FINN SHELBY

CONTRARY

CONTENT WARNINGS: Implied/referenced child abuse, implied sexual content (nothing graphic, just referenced)

When Finn Shelby and (Y/N) Gold are pushed into an arranged marriage, they agree to act civil towards each other. What happens when that civility turns into something more?

TAGLIST (Interact with this post to be tagged in the newest part of 'Contrary' whenever I update :)) )

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20 Part 21 Part 22 Part 23 Part 24 Part 25 Part 26 Part 27 Part 28 Part 29 Part 30 Part 31 Part 32 Part 33 Part 34 Part 35 Part 36 Part 37 Part 38 Part 39 Part 40 Part 41 Part 42 Part 43 Part 44

TWILIGHT

SETH CLEARWATER

ANGEL

Prologue Part I

CONTRARY - FINN SHELBY X READER; PART 19

PUBLISHED: 06/06/2022

!!FIRST PART HERE!!

Part 1

MASTERLIST

FINN'S POV

I stood next to you in the field as everyone placed their items in the wagon, to go up on the smoke with Arthur. You had placed an envelope in there, and wouldn't tell me what it was, as well as some flowers. We had bought two windowsill planters, like you wanted to, and set one up in your room, and hung the other on the outside of our lounge room window.

You were looking around, as if expecting someone. I nudged you, and you ignored me. I huffed and looked over to my left, and my jaw dropped.

Esme was approaching us with her kids, along with two women. I recognised one as your cousin Jenica, the other I didn't know. You walked up to her and hugged her, thanking her for coming. I looked around. Charlie, Tommy, Polly, Ada, Lizzie, and Linda all looked just as surprised.

You and the others approached our group.

"I'm here only to watch Arthur go up on the smoke. Then, me and the kids, we're leaving." Esme spat as you came and stood back at my side.

Tommy nodded solemnly, his gaze cold and calculating as he looked as Esme, then at you. You stared right back at him, defiantly unafraid.

"How did you manage this?" Tommy asked you lowly, watching as Esme and the kids put flowers, drawings, and personal belongings on the wagon.

"I whispered it into the breeze and she carried it all the way to Esme for me," You replied, not even bothering to look at the man.

Tommy gave a short grunt, then walked off, knowing that was all he was going to get from you.

"Does Jenica have anything to do with it?" I questioned croakily, wrapping an arm around your shoulder.

You leaned into my side, bringing your own arm around me, "Yes. Jenica's sister, she ran off and married a Lee, one of the same ones that Esme and the lot are travelling with. Jenica got a message to Esme for me, through her sister. Esme called Jenica's apartment when I was there and I begged and begged, saying that John's kids deserved to see their uncle off, and Esme agreed to bring them."

I looked at you in surprise. You looked back up at me, and raised your eyebrows, as if to say 'what?'. I leaned down and placed a kiss on your forehead, silently thanking you. If I spoke I'd be crying in seconds.

"It's alright." You murmured, rubbing my back, "It wasn't that hard to do."

I snorted. Tracking down people who didn't even know where they were going to be in twenty-four hours seemed an impossible task. But, if one person could do the job, of course it'd be you, using one of your many tricks that you had up your sleeve.

I turned to watch Uncle Charlie and others put gasoline on the logs below the wagon, my chin still sat on your head.

I noticed something that wasn't tears in the corner of my eye, and turned my head to look, you doing the same.

Audrey Changretta was approaching us, carrying a white flag. I stood up straighter as someone called out 'Tommy!'

"It's all right, let her come," He announced, holding a hand out to stop anyone from doing anything.

Your free hand found mine, and you squeezed my hand. I gave it a squeeze back as Tommy said something to Audrey.

•••

You, Tommy, Polly, and I were now in Linda's living room, Audrey Changretta sitting across from us, sipping her tea as if she just popped in to discuss the weather. Tommy said you could come along because you deserved to know what was going on, especially because you were thrown in the deep end by both the kidnapping and when he needed your help in the Square.

You were sat on a cushion on the floor next to Polly's feet, because Tommy knew that she'd be able to hold you back in case you tried to hit Audrey. You wouldn't dare hit Polly, you admired her too much. He knew that you'd probably give me a shiner without a second thought.

But I knew that you weren't stupid. You knew what importance this meeting held, and how important it was to keep your hands to yourself, to stay calm. Tommy didn't know. Or, he didn't care. It was hard to tell.

"Your note talked about making terms for peace," Audrey began, "But my son says there are no terms. You took my husband and my son. We took two of your brothers."

"The vendetta is done," Tommy said solemnly, nodding.

"We say the vendetta is won," Audrey interjected, "We will take everything you have. All your businesses, signed over to us. You agree to this, or my son will kill you all, one by one."

"The vendetta is won." Tommy agreed, making my blood run cold, "That's it. No more killing."

"Who do you think you were, Mr. Shelby?" Audrey spat, and you rested your head on Polly's leg, watching as she and Tommy stared at each other in an act of dominance.

Tommy blinked and looked down at the glass in front of him, picking it up, and throwing it back in one go. You looked at me and raised your eyebrows as if to say 'what now'.

I unclasped my hands and grabbed my own glass next to me, shaking my free hand. 'I don't know'. You sighed, and pursed your lips, looking away.

•••

We were stood in Tommy's warehouse where he brewed his gin, looking at Luca and his gang stood across the room from us.

I noticed one man with a fucked up eye, a big scar running across it. It looked recent, but not fresh. He was looking at you angrily with his good eye. You just gave him a smile.

It clicked it my brain; this was the bent bastard who tried it on you.

Luca spoke in Italian, then you snapped, "Look at us what?"

The Italians looked shocked. Luca quickly regained his composure, and ignored your little outburst.

"All that's left of the Peaky fucking Blinders." He said, then approached the table.

He snapped his fingers, then another man brought a briefcase forward, pulled papers out, and placed them on the table.

"I've had my lawyer draw up these papers," Luca announced, stepping back over to the table, "Cover every enterprise in your possession. Bars, restaurants, warehouses."

He gestured widely, then down to the papers, "Every fucking thing that you've taken all these years to gather together."

"You will sign them all over," He walked over to be face to face with Tommy, "to my family, or you're gonna die. Right here."

They stared at each other for a bit.

"I would've buried you all, but my mother, she uh, she knows you, she said, it'll be worse for you if I let you live, and take away everything that you have." Luca said, then raised his hands and placed them on Tommy's shoulders, who held out his arms.

"Search them," Luca commanded, then pulled out Tommy's hand gun, passing it to another man in his crew, and went and stood in front of Polly, "Especially don't trust this bitch."

He reached up and ripped open her blouse, and I could feel you stiffen next to me. I nudged you with my foot. I felt the same way, but we couldn't do anything about it. A man moved forward and yanked you away from me, patting you down. I raised my arms as someone came and checked me, but kept my eye on you, even as they took away my handgun.

The man pulled out a hunting knife from your sleeve, and kept on patting away. He placed the big knife on the floor, the jagged edge catching the light. Your eyes widened, then you slapped the man across the face, making Luca turn to you and the men at the back raise their guns.

"You should tell your men not to get too handsy, that's what made your friend lose his eye last time," You hissed, and Luca simply nodded, turning to the man you slapped.

"She's a kid. Behave," He warned, and the man nodded, then finished patting you down.

"She's a good kid too. Pity you can't sign her over," Luca mused, and I felt my heart stop.

Surely they couldn't ask for you, could they? Yeah, your father married you off but it wasn't a contract.

The men all went back over to the other side of the room once they were done, and you returned to my side. I grabbed your hand and held it tight. There wasn't any hand squeezing, any silent reassurances that it would be alright, because we weren't sure if it would be.

They could take you back to New York and we wouldn't be able to do a damn thing.

"So," Luca began, looking at Tommy as he grabbed a pen out of his coat pocket, "Sign. Every fucking one of them."

He dropped the pen on the table, then leaned over it, putting his hands on the paper, "You can sign them on your knees. On the floor."

Luca then flipped the table, making you gasp.

"Get on your fucking knees and sign!" He growled, and Tommy knelt down, looking up at Luca.

"A friend of mine once said," Tommy stated, pointing a finger at Luca, "Big fucks small. So I had to find someone bigger than you. Now, you may know there are two families in Brooklyn, who want to take over your monopoly on the import of liquor into New York."

"But if they move against you in New York, they'll start a war between the families." Polly interjected.

You looked up at me unsurely, and I shook my head. I didn't know what the fuck was going on. As usual. I tried to put on my business face, to make it seem like I was in on the secret.

"But if you were to die in a vendetta with some fucking bookmaker in Birmingham, they could take over your business without a war." Tommy announced, looking up at Luca, who seemed less than pleased.

"We also contacted a businessman in Chicago." Polly continued, "He's also interested in moving into the liquors business in New York."

"His name is Alphonse Capone." Tommy declared, and Luca's facial expression changed.

"You been talking to that fat fuck?" Luca questioned, and I could hear his voice shake.

"You see, all the blood relatives you brought with you from New York, they're all dead, Mr. Changretta." Tommy stated, "And these men here, they work for money, for the highest bidder. They now have new orders."

"Is that right?" Luca asked, turning around to face his men, "Is that right?"

They all shuffled backwards. Luca turned back to face us, nodding.

"Hey ... Very fucking–"Luca cut himself off, reaching into his coat for his gun.

Tommy picked up something from the floor and hit it out of Luca's hands, then quickly got up, grabbing him. Luca forced him back against a pipe, and Tommy head butted the Italian, then pushed him towards a drum of gin, sending a punch fair across his face.

Luca picked up the rod that Tommy had hit the gun out of his hands with, and hit Tommy with it, then took another swing, Tommy dodging this one.

Luca backed him into the pipe again, and started hitting him over the back with the rod. Tommy put his arms around his midriff, and pushed Luca back into a table holding bottles of gin, smashing his face into them repeatedly.

The door opened, and I gasped. In walked Arthur, as alive as I was.

He raised a revolver, and shot Luca in the head, the bullet busting the barrel of gin behind him.

"Tell your people in Chicago that Michael Gray will sign the import license to New York." Tommy commanded, "Three hundred barrels of English fry gin a month."

"Leave. All of ya," Arthur ordered the men, and they started filtering out of the door.

"You! One eye! Get back here, now!" I hissed, making the man stop, and turn around on the spot.

"Finn," Tommy warned, placing a hand on my shoulder.

I yanked it out of his grip, leaning down and picking up my handgun.

"Come on." Arthur commanded gruffly, leading everyone, bar you, out of the warehouse.

"I want to take his eyes, and his hands, can I do it?" I asked, turning to you, my eyes immediately meeting yours.

You pursed your lips, but nodded, "Do it, Finn. Just— don't carry on with it. Make it quick."

I nodded, turning back around, and shooting the man with one eye in the knee, making him scream in pain as he buckled. I picked up your hunting knife and stalked over to him, crouching in front of him.

"You're either very brave or very stupid to fucking follow Luca here. I, and my wife over there, believe it's the latter." I said, grabbing his face and looking him in the eye.

"You know what happens to people who touch my family, my wife without their permission?" I asked, and he shook his head.

"They lose their hands," I snarled, pushing him back, making his back hit the concrete with a crack.

I scrambled to stand over him, and started hacking off his left hand, making him shriek as I sawed through the bone, and pulled his hand free, throwing it .

"Holy fuck," I heard you breath behind me as I threw his dismembered hand away, then started on his right hand.

He was losing blood quickly, his skin turning pale and clammy as I finished the second, standing back up and looking down at him.

I pulled my cap off, and ripped the razor blade free from the inside of the brim, then leaned down, and sliced through his good eye, making him bleed.

"Always take the eyes first, never forget where you come from," Tommy said, making me turn around.

He was stood in the doorway that everyone left out of.

I nodded, and you came up to stand next to me.

"Let's go home, clean you up. You did good, Finn." You advised, leading me out of the building.

I realised once the sun hit my face that I hadn't hesitated like I did when I had to blind the Italian that helped 'kill' Arthur. I didn't think at all. I was just mad. Maybe that's the secret.

•••

You looked down at me from your spot in your armchair as I laid on my back in front of the fire, bottle of whiskey sitting just beside my left hand.

"You should be getting drunk at the Garrison with your family." You stated, petting the cat as he came and rubbed against your legs.

"Fuck my family," I grumbled, sitting up with a struggle, "I should've been told Arthur was alive."

I went to go take a sip of the whiskey, but found the bottle empty. I stood up, and threw it at the protective grate in front of the fireplace, making you jump as it smashed.

"Fucking hell, Finn, if you've got a problem-"

"I have a problem, all right!" I hissed, kicking the coffee table with enough force to flip it up onto the couch, "Arthur's my fucking brother too, I deserved to know that he was still alive!"

"You're right," You admitted, making me stop and look at you.

You never admitted to being wrong, even if you were.

"What they did was wrong. They should've told you that he was alive, you're old enough to be trusted with that information. But, that's not the way things happened, and if you have a problem, you should go and tell Tommy instead of taking it out on the poor furniture." You said calmly.

I scowled and sat back down on the floor. You came and sat next to me, bringing your bottle of gin down with you.

You lifted it to my lips and I took a sip. You took a sip yourself, then put the cap on it. I watched as your wedding ring caught the light from the fire, then closed my eyes and took deep breaths to calm myself down.

You started humming a tune you had heard on the radio the other day, which then turned into mindless humming. I listened to that, the crackling of the fire, and the purring of the cat. Home.

"We gonna go to Tommy's and have a few with Arthur?" You asked, making me open an eye to look at you.

"I can drive us there, I only had that one sip." You said, and I opened my other eye and nodded.

"If we get too drunk we can sleep at Tommy's," I muttered as I got up and grabbed our coats, passing you yours, then putting on my boots.

You chuckled as you grabbed the keys, and said see you later to the cat. I grabbed your hand and lead you out to the car, feeling excited to go and have a drink with my not-dead brother.

§§§

Okay so I finished stranger things s4 and I told my friend that Two was kinda cute and she replied 'why do you only like fictional white boys that look like rats' AND IM STILL CACKLING but also how dare she 😭😭 but shes not completely wrong tho ahskdhsh

Also I'm loving Robin and Nancy's newfound friendship heck yeah

Love y'all ❤️

- Sunflower x

CONTRARY - FINN SHELBY X READER; PART 37

PUBLISHED: 14/07/2022

Part 1

MASTERLIST

TAGLIST

READER'S POV

"(Y/N), which frame do you want for this photo, this oval one or this rectangle one?" Finn asked, holding the two frames up, along with the photo he was talking about.

The photo was the one of Saoirse leaning on the couch.

"Mm, oval one," I decided, and he nodded.

I took the backing off of the heart shaped one in front of me and placed a photo of Finn, Saoirse, and I (and the animals) in it.

We were just finishing up putting photos in the frames now. These two would be the last two to go in the living room, one going to sit on the piano (the one of Saoirse) and the one I had was going to sit on the bookshelf.

I didn't like photos in bedrooms. I was funny like that. I got it off of an elderly woman that used to live next to me when I lived with Marian. She said that photos in bedrooms would see every sinful action happening, and as a child I completely believed it.

I secured the back onto the frame once more and picked it up, then stood up and walked over to the bookshelf, deciding the put it on the shelf that was eye level with me.

It sat between a deck of cards and a small clay statue Saoirse had made in an art lesson at school. It was meant to be an artistic rendering of a heart, but it was shaped more like a lopsided triangle.

My eyes drifted back to the cards again, and my heart stopped. Oh fuck, Finn and I forgot to give each other anniversary gifts. I had gotten Finn one on very short notice, but I didn't want to bring it up in case he forgot. It'd be shit to make him feel bad about it.

"Erm, Finn?" I started as I turned back around, facing my husband who was now gathering all of the empty photo frames.

"Yeah?" He replied, stacking the frames into a pile.

"I just realised that we forgot to give each other gifts for our anniversary," I snorted, shifting from foot to foot.

"Oh, fuck," He muttered, standing up, photo frames forgotten, "I got you one but I got distracted with the breakfast and the photos."

He then headed upstairs. I headed into the mudroom, and fished around in my coat pocket, producing a deck of cards. The back of them were blank, and that's where I put my gift for him.

I went and sat on the landing of the stairs, waiting for my husband, bouncing my leg as I did so. I heard Finn coming back down the hallway, and looked up when I heard his feet hit the stairs to see him carrying an engraved wooden box.

He came and sat next to me, and handed me the box. I ran my fingers along the top of it, loving the feeling of the wood dipping and curving. It was an intricate design of a sunflower with vines and other things surrounding it. There were small divots in either side of the box, and it had three drawers in the front. I opened the top, and found that it was a jewellery box. Inside the lid were hooks to hang necklaces on, with pouches at the bottom so they could sit in there, and adjacent to it were boxes for rings and pairs of earrings. There were two small figurines holding hands on a little platform along the back of the box.

"You can lift the top bit out," Finn informed me, and I did so, revealing more compartments, these ones slightly bigger, probably for bracelets and bangles.

I put the top part back in then shut the lid, opening up the sides to find more hooks to hand stuff on. I opened the first drawer in the front, and it was another compartment drawer. The next one down had padding in it, to put rings in. The last one was just a drawer with no compartments.

"Oh, it's gorgeous Finn, thank you," I murmured, looking up at my husband.

I needed a jewellery box, having to use the drawer of my vanity to put everything in and just being too lazy to go to the shops and buy anything.

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, "It's alright."

He then reached out and touched the back of the box, and I heard something cranking. Once he stopped cranking and removed his hand, the figurines started rotating and the box played music. After a bit, I realised what song was playing.

"Is that one of the songs from the ballet we went and seen?" I questioned my husband, who nodded.

"Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy," He confirmed, and I grinned.

"You're so romantic," I teased, and looked back at the figurines.

The girl was wearing a yellow dress, and the boy was wearing a peaky cap. I snorted.

"Are these meant to be us?" I asked jokingly, and watched as Finn blushed.

"Oh, it is!" I crowed, throwing my head back and clapping my hands, "Finn, you're such a romantic, it's adorable."

"Shut up," Finn mumbled, red in the face as he noticed the cards on the stairs above us.

"This mine?" He asked, reaching for them.

"Yeah," I replied, watching him as he grabbed the pack of cards and flipped them over in his hands, inspecting them.

"52 things I love about you," He read the packet, then opened it.

They were normal playing cards, but had blank backs. I wrote the '52 Things' on the backs. I watched as he looked through all of them, chuckling at some.

1. Your looks (I didn't marry you for anything else, Shelby)

2. You help me reach things on the top shelf

3. You're always there for Saoirse (as well as your own nieces and nephews)

4. You brush the cat when I don't feel like doing it

5. You help me think positive when I feel negative

6. You helped me build up my self confidence

7. Your laugh

8. Your cuddles

9. Your kisses

10. You're not afraid to be silly

11. You help make our house a home

12. You make a good pillow

13. You clean the hair clogs from drains so Saoirse and I don't have to

14. You treat our animals like human babies

15. You try to maintain good relationships with my family and friends

16. You use sound effects when telling a story

17. You always touch door jambs when you walk through doors

18. You run through the alphabet when alphabetising anything

19. You keep a photo of Saoirse and I tucked into your cap (yes, I've seen it, sentimental bastard)

20. You always flip things around in your hands

21. You're an early morning person like me

22. You like climbing things (like me)

23. You put up with Finn Junior when the pair of you didn't like each other

24. You got me Christmas and birthday presents from our pets and signed the cards 'To Mum, from your loving sons'

25. You put your family first

26. You attend Saoirse and I's many activities without any complaints

27. You spoil us

28. Your voice

29. Your sense of humour

30. Your ability to keep our inside jokes running

31. You are considerate

32. Your personality

33. You learned how to do hair just so you could do mine when I don't feel like it

34. You always catch my attention just as I'm about to walk out the door so you can get one last look at me

35. You're a good cook

36. You accept me for who I am

37. You offer to wash up because you know I don't like floaties in dishwater

38. You know how I take my tea

39. You always make sure there's biscuits in the cupboard

40. You always give Saoirse another sweet whenever you think I'm not looking

41. You trust me, and I know I can trust you

42. You got your ears pierced with me and Saoirse on New Years Eve (the gold cuffs look nice, by the way)

43. Your freckles (and the way you let me play connect the dots with them sometimes)

44. Your hand fits perfectly around mine

45. You laugh at your own jokes

46. You taught me how to skip stones

47. You won me Pip (I am still disappointed that you did not take the opportunity to name your bear Squeak so we matched names)

48. The first thing you do when you walk in the door is seek out Saoirse and I

49. You learned the languages of our people

50. You buy me yellow things and Saoirse blue things whenever you see fit

51. The way that you are unapologetically you

52. You said 'I do' on the 10th of January, 1926.

"It's not much because I forgot it was our anniversary until you reminded me the other day," I admitted, and watched as he gently ran his fingertips over the writing on the cards.

"They're amazing, (Y/N), honest. I love them, they're thoughtful as," Finn replied, his voice soft and eyes glistening.

I was happy to sit there in silence with him until he felt better, but Tuck decided to come in through the dog door and track mud behind him. He shook himself, sending mud flying everywhere, some even going as far to hit the couches around the rug.

"Oh — You could've used the mat, now I've got to bath you! You naughty, naughty boy!" I complained as I used the banister to help myself stand up, Finn sniggering behind me.

Tuck just flipped over, ready for belly rubs as I approached him.

"No," I told the dog, wagging my finger at him, making him whine as I walked past him and into the hallway.

I walked down to the bathroom and grabbed Tuck's tub from in the cupboard under the sink. It held his brushes, nail clippers, and shampoo in it. I sat it on the sink, ready for when the mud dried and I could brush it out, then give him a shower.

I headed back out to the living room, where Finn was towelling the wet mud off of Tuck with one of the towels from the mud room. Tuck was gnawing on a bone, looking quite content. Finn threw me another towel, and I wiped the mud off of the floor and couch with it, not wanting to grab the cleaning supplies from the basement. I'd wipe it down when I vacuumed and mopped next.

Finn threw his towel back into the mudroom, and I followed suit, Tuck running over and laying on the floor in front of the window as soon as he was free.

I 'awwed' at the sight. I knew he'd probably fall asleep in the sun. My big boy.

"I love you," Finn said as I moved and grabbed our gifts, wanting to put them up so the dogs didn't chew them.

"I love you too," I replied, then hummed as I headed over and put them on the bookshelf, not wanting to walk up the stairs just yet.

Finn pulled a smoke and his lighter out of his pocket, placing the smoke between his lips then lighting it. I screwed my nose up and opened the window.

"You never used to hate the smell that much," Finn complained, lit cigarette still dangling between his lips as he came and sat on the window seat.

It was true. The smell of cigarette smoke always stunk to me, but it had become proper rank to me as of late.

"Well it turns my stomach now, you remember this morning," I huffed, going and grabbing a book off of the bookshelf.

Finn nodded in agreement as he leaned out of the window and exhaled.

Finn lit up a smoke in the bedroom this morning while we were laid in bed, and it smelled so bad that I threw up.

"You know, Saoirse won't arrive for a bit, we've got the house to ourselves for a while," Finn said suggestively, making me snort.

"You should've thought about that before you lit up that smoke, you'll stink of it," I pointed out, making Finn quickly put the smoke out on the window frame.

"I can go have a shower so I don't stink, wanna join?" Finn asked, a smug grin on his face.

"You can go shower, I'll be here when you get out," I answered as I settled down across from him, opening up the book.

Finn groaned, leaning against the window dramatically.

"We can christen the couch in front of the fire," I said, not looking up from my book, knowing that if I looked at Finn I'd probably drag him over to the couch myself.

Finn whooped and headed upstairs, nearly tripping up them, making me snort and grin.

"I'm okay!" He called out back down the stairs.

I sighed and put my book down, knowing damn well I wouldn't get any reading done as I waited for my husband.

•••

THIRD PERSON'S POV

You packed the last of the dishes away, and wiped down the sinks. You had a picnic dinner in the garden, you and your little family (plus the animals). You found out that the smell of coffee turned your stomach as well.

The phone rang, and you hurried over it, picking it up with a "Hello?"

"Bee! It's Bonnie," Bonnie greeted, giggling as he sat on the floor next to the kitchen bench in his own apartment.

"Hello, Bonnie," You replied, rolling your eyes and feeling yourself smile at how happy your brother sounded, "What's got you so happy?"

"I met a boy and went on a date today," Bonnie replied lowly even though it was only you two in the phone.

"Oh, that's great! What's his name? And how was the date?" You asked as you jumped up onto your kitchen bench, knowing you might be on the phone for a while.

"His name is Oscar, and the date went grand. He bought me beer when we met up because he thought that I wouldn't like flowers, y'know, because flowers are too girl-like," Bonnie said, twirling the cord around his pointer finger. "He's really nice, I like him. I could've cried when he dropped me home."

"That's cute," You said, swinging your legs as you drummed your fingers against the countertop, your nails clicking as you did so.

"Shut up," Bonnie spoke, and you just knew that his entire face would be red, right to the tips of his ears.

"He's coming to my next fight, do you think he can sit next to you in the front row? I would've asked Ez but she's scary sometimes," Bonnie stated, and you 'awwed', resulting in him telling you to shut up again.

"He can sit next to me," You confirmed, wanting to meet the boy who managed to make your Bonnie so giggly.

"And don't be mean or tell him anything about me from when I was little, or I'll smother you with your pillow as you sleep," Bonnie threatened, and you agreed that you wouldn't, even though you knew that he wouldn't smother you.

Bonnie loved you too much to hurt you on purpose.

As you continued talking to your brother, watching the hand on the clock go round and round, you felt closer than ever to your brother, and you were glad. You felt yourself growing apart from your siblings after you moved in with Finn, but now, as you giggled with Bonnie over the way he and Oscar managed to get lost on their way to the place they were having dinner, you knew that you were overthinking.

You were fine, your siblings were fine, and you all couldn't grow apart if you tried.

§§§

Another filler chapter, I apologise if it doesn't flow as well as my chapters usually do

This chapter was surprisingly hard to write and I have no idea why lol I was stuck for agesss but I managed to finish it for you guys

Also: voting for the names has closed!

The baby names that got the most votes were 🥁🥁🥁

Finley & Isaac!!!

For those of you who wanted Elijah, I was always planning on making Elijah a middle name if it didn't get picked as a first name anyway lol

Hope you all are well :)))

Love y'all ❤️

- Sunflower x

TAGLIST

@meadownicolee

@toothlessmcleod

@im-your-possession

@bethabear12

@paisley-37

@shelundeadxxxx

@bluehairdie

@krillfromsky

@cucumberfingefsandwiches

NEXT PART

Part 38

CONTRARY - FINN SHELBY X READER; PART 6

PUBLISHED: 17/05/2022

!!FIRST PART HERE!!

Part 1

MASTERLIST

READER'S POV

(A/N: I have absolutely no idea what wedding dress shopping is like lmao bear with me here pls)

I paced back and forth, waiting for Polly and the rest of the girls to arrive.

"Keep on going and you'll tear a hole in the carpet." Finn said, lighting up a cigarette.

"Shut up! I'm going shopping for a dress everyone will see me in, it's stressful!" I snapped, turning around to face him.

He shrugged, "I'm going shopping for a suit today and I'm not walking a quarter mile."

I rolled my eyes as I unwrapped a piece of gum, "The suits are all the same, no one ever looks at suits, it's the bride's dress they all look at."

Finn hummed in agreement, and placed his hands on his stomach as he bounced his leg.

"I've been thinking," He began as I threw the gum into my mouth, "We agreed to be civil, so we called a truce but we don't have terms for the truce. We should make some."

"How smart, do you want a medal?" I snarked, sitting on the coffee table in front of him, crossing one leg over the other, trying to be mindful of the fact I had a dress on for once.

"I'm just saying, it would make stuff a lot easier if we knew what to expect from each other," Finn pointed out.

"That does make sense," I admitted, tucking my hair behind my ears and smoothing it down.

Finn produced a comb from his inner coat pocket and offered it to me. I took it wordlessly, and used it to tame my hair somewhat.

"Maybe you should tie it up?" Finn offered, making me scowl.

"No!" I snapped loudly, making him jump.

"I wasn't gonna fight you over it," Finn grumbled, making me throw the comb at him.

"So, say we do call an official truce, what happens if one of us breaks it?" I asked curiously, leaning forward, placing my forearms across my legs to support my weight.

"Whatever the other says — If I broke the truce you could tell me to run down Watery Lane wearing nothing but a smile, and the other way round," Finn decided, making me smirk.

"That sounds like a spot of fun — let's start making the rules, then," I agreed, and he got up, grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil off of the top of the fireplace, and sat back down, leaning on the coffee table.

"I'll write it up and stick it on top of the mantle so we can always see it, and so you can read it later on," Finn explained, already writing the number one.

I giggled as I realised I read the number — I learned my numbers from one to ten last night, as well as all my letters — Jeremiah called me a fast learner, a praise that kept me in a good mood all last night, even after Finn started on me because I dropped a plate.

"Okay, number one, no stirring each other up," Finn announced, writing it down.

"Number two, no touching me unless I say so," I supplied, leaning back onto my palms.

"I'll make it no touching each other unless the other says so. Number three, don't let the other get insulted in our presence, it will save a lot of fighting." Finn said, writing it down.

I frowned as I thought about how Finn didn't say anything to Linda yesterday.

"Number four, we have the right to walk away during an argument and the other person can't follow us," I added, watching the pencil glide gracefully across the page.

"Number five, look out for and protect each other — we're in the middle of a vendetta, the Italians probably know your family is working with mine, so they could target you too." Finn explained, making me purse my lips and nod.

As Finn put a full stop a knock sounded on the front door, along with Polly calling out. I got off the table, and walked over to the door, opening it.

Ezzie, Saoirse, and Lizzy were all standing there. Saoirse ran forward and cuddled me tightly.

"Are you off then?" Finn asked from behind me, coming to stand next to me.

"Yeah, busy day." Lizzie replied, "We'll see you after, come on (Y/N)."

"See you later," I said to Finn as I linked arms with Ezzie and grabbed Saoirse's hand.

"Miss Polly is driving us and Ezzie's getting in with Miss Ada and Miss Lizzie," Saoirse babbled, walking me over to Polly's car.

"Hey, Poll," I greeted, letting Saoirse slide across the brown seat before hopping into the vehicle.

"Morning," Polly replied, sending me a small smile and setting off, "I heard from a little birdie that you wanted a yellow dress?"

"Yeah, it's my favourite colour," I admitted, "But if I can't find one it's not the end of the world, I don't think we'll find one anyway."

"We'll do our best, my girl," Polly reassured me, making me grin.

"Saoirse, guess what I did last night?" I said to my little sister, watching her fiddle with the end of her coat.

"What?" She replied curiously, looking up at me.

"I learned how to read and write the alphabet, and my numbers up to ten," I said, watching her eyes widen and her jaw drop slightly.

"Can you teach me?" She asked excitedly, bouncing up and down.

"I can try," I replied, turning my eyes onto the road.

Within a few minutes we were outside a boutique named 'Susanna's Seams'. It looked nice enough. Polly stopped the car, and we all hopped out.

"Yellow dresses aren't common, so don't get your hopes up," Polly informed me, and I nodded.

The woman fixing up a mannequin in the window looked like she was going to faint when she saw us all. Polly strutted up to the door and opened it, Saoirse right behind her. I followed the pair, holding the door open for Lizzie, Ada, and Ezzie.

I shut the door behind Ezzie, and looked around. The older, frumpy woman behind the counter looked bewildered.

"(Y/N), flip that sign on the door to closed," Polly instructed, and I did as I was told.

"But we're open!" The woman in the window protested.

"Not until we leave, by order of the Peaky fuckin' Blinders." Polly said, pulling a flask out of her fur coat and taking a swig from it, then pointing the sliver object in my direction, "This young lady needs a wedding dress, something in a yellow shade."

The older woman rushed to the other side of the store, grabbing some dresses off of the rack.

"Sophie, come help," The older woman hissed, making the younger woman dart over and grab another, empty rack and wheel it over to the older woman, who started placing the dresses she gathered onto it.

I sat on a seat next to Polly, watching them scramble around for us. Once that rack was full, Sophie wheeled it over to us, the dresses ranging from a bright, eye catching yellow to a toned down, barely there yellow.

"Here you are," Sophie said, sounding breathless.

I stood up and started looking at the dresses, arranging the ones I liked to one side and the ones I didn't to the other side. I only liked three dresses.

"There's a fitting room over there near Susanna," Sophie pointed over to where the frumpy woman was, and I nodded, dragging the rack over there.

"Ezzie, get up and come help me with the zips." I commanded, and Esmeralda didn't hesitate to jump up and come over.

I grabbed the first dress and headed inside the room, Ezzie hot on my tail. I gave the dress to her, and she hung it behind the door. It was a nice dress, very much like a ball gown, with no straps and a big tulle skirt.

I started getting undressed, and, once I was in my under layers, Ezzie handed me the dress, and I undid the zip, then stepped into it, then she did it up.

"Oh, God, the material's not right, get me out," I urged, and Ezzie leaned over and undid the dress with ease.

I stepped out of it, and Ezzie hung it back up, and opened the door, grabbing the next dress. I tried it on, and the material felt fine, but it was unflattering.

"You look like a half plucked chicken," Ezzie snorted.

"Shut up," I grumbled as she undid me.

She passed the last dress, and I stepped into it, then looked at myself in the mirror in front of us, and I gasped.

It fit me like a glove, and wasn't unflattering in the slightest. It was an off shoulder gown with sheer sleeves ending at my wrists, and a tulle skirt, but it wasn't too big, just right. It had gold detailing on the bodice, which trailed down the dress.

(A/N: This is just the dress that came closest to what I imagined, you can envision your own)

"I feel like that fairy princess in the bedtime story your Mum used to tell us," I murmured, as if being loud would break the magic and the dress would turn into something horrid.

"You look gorgeous, (N/N)," Ezzie whispered as she did up the zip, "Let's go show everyone else."

She led me to where the other women were sitting, and Saoirse squealed.

"(N/N), (N/N), you look — you look so pretty!" She gushed, bouncing in her spot next to Lizzie.

"Gorgeous," Lizzie said sincerely, giving me a small smile.

"You look a vision," Ada confirmed, "If my brother seeing you like that doesn't make him want to skip the ceremony and consummate the marriage I don't know what will."

I blushed and looked away, not used to being complimented.

"Give us a spin, love," Polly encouraged.

"Yes, spin!" Saoirse shouted, clapping her hands.

I spun on the spot, giggling at how the skirt billowed around me.

"I never want to take it off," I told the girls, making Ada ‘aww’.

I felt truely and utterly gorgeous in this yellow wedding dress.

"It doesn't look very yellow," Sophie stated, making me scowl.

"It'll look yellow in the light of the sun, so shut your mouth you ignorant fucking cunt!" I snapped at her, Ezzie placing a hand on my shoulder.

"On the house," Susanna said as I stormed back to the fitting room to get dressed.

"We're Peaky Blinders, it's never any other way." Polly said flatly as Ezzie closed the door behind us, making me snicker, "And that girl there, Sophie, she needs to go — permanently."

Ezzie unzipped the dress, and I stepped out of it, pulling my other dress back on and slipping my feet into my shoes, and we walked back out to the women, Ezzie holding the dress. Sophie came over and Ezzie handed it to her to be bagged.

"Now, I don't want to have all the same style dresses, because what will suit one of you mightn't suit the other — Just pick whatever dress you want, preferably in your favourite colour," I informed the group, "The men can match a tie to a dress."

That had been a detail Finn and I had discussed last night after coming home from Jeremiah's. I didn't want everyone looking the same, we're not fucking blades of grass.

Everyone started getting off the seats and looking for dresses. Ezzie set off towards the green dresses.

I lead Saoirse over to the kids dresses, looking for a white one — Another detail we had agreed upon, the kids wearing plain white and black instead of colours. Saoirse was going to wear a dress that was white with a black sash around it, and Karl was going to wear a plain black suit with a black bow tie. I had no doubt they would have everyone clucky.

•••

We managed to get everyone the dress they wanted. Polly had picked a gorgeous purple dress, Ada snagged a dark blue, Lizzie grabbed a deep red, and Ezzie picked a bold green. The best part was that everyone looked absolutely, effortlessly beautiful in their dresses. That and the fact that we got all of the dresses for free.

I decided to keep my dress up in Polly's spare room. She didn't want me keeping it at the house in case Finn saw it.

The girls and I discussed my somethings; something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue, and I had picked them out successfully, except for my something new, because apparently Finn was covering that for the pair of us.

The something old was going to be Birdie Boswell's pearl earrings. I was hesitant to wear them, but Polly said that they were passed down to her and she could therefore pass it down to whoever she damn well pleased. My something borrowed was going to be the tie from Dad's own wedding suit that he wore when he got married to Ezzie, Bonnie, and Saoirse's mother, Rose. I was going to wrap it around my bouquet. My something blue was going to be my undergarments.

On the way home, Saoirse jumped in with Ada, and the rest of us women went to go get my something blue — nice looking undergarments, with a matching garter set. I was planning on burning them as soon as I got home.

I could just wear a blue ribbon on my wrist. What the girls didn't knew wouldn't hurt them.

§§§

I couldn't find any nice obviously yellow dresses 💔💔 buttt champagne is still technically yellow lol

Love y'all ❤️

- Sunflower x

NEXT PART

Part 7

ANGEL - SETH CLEARWATER X READER

PREVOUS Prologue

I

THIRD PERSON'S POV

Seth sat with the pack and the imprints after telling them about you — The little he knew anyways. He was still hung up on the fact that you would only be here for two months.

"Why don't you, I don't know, show up in the same places she is?" Embry suggested, throwing a baseball to Quil as they sat down, albeit carefully — Sam would kill them if they broke something.

Emily wouldn’t mind, but since she bought half of the stuff in the house Sam would break their fingers if they scratched even one thing.

"He's not a mind reader, Embry, God," Leah snarked, throwing an arm around her not so little brother's shoulders, pulling him slightly closer to her.

She smelled like home, so he nestled in a little closer, needing the comfort.

"But the little Cullen is, maybe Jake can ask them for some help," Embry shot back, and Seth looked elated, but then his face dropped.

"But I don't want her to think I'm a stalker or anything," Seth murmured defeatedly, and it was back to the drawing board.

The room went silent, Seth dragging the slightly good mood down with him.

"Adopt a dog," Quil suggested, and everyone looked at him.

"You said she has a dog — If you get one then you can take it for walks when she takes hers for walks. That's not that stalkerish. You have an excuse to be in the same place at the same time," Quil elaborated as he fumbled an extra hard throw from Embry, and Seth grinned so bright that it made everyone else crack a small smile.

"Quil, you're a genius! Now all I need to do is find a dog." Seth replied, his mind running wild as he pulled out his phone and scrolled through his contacts, wondering who to message.

Adopting dogs from the local shelter was really expensive, and he was saving for a new dirt bike. He only had $200 to go, and he really didn’t want to waste money on a new dog. Not when he could nearly taste the dirt bike.

"Rez dogs are having puppies all of the time man, but if you're that keen Miss Postoak is trying to get rid of her bitch since she can't afford her right now, she’s only a companion dog and the others are working dogs," Jared supplied before taking another bite of his blueberry muffin, courtesy of Emily, and Seth felt victorious as he clicked onto his Mom’s contact and called her, asking if he could get a dog for his birthday.

"You're picking up its’ crap, buying its’ dog food and leashes, and it is getting neutered, we have enough strays on the reservation as is, young man — and I'll help you set up the yard for it when you get it," She replied, then said 'love you' and hung up the phone.

Seth whooped, then calmed back down, looking around the room at his expectant friends.

"What the fuck do I need for a dog?"

Leah pinched her brother’s ear for his foul language, making everyone laugh.

•••

Thankfully, Old Quil owned many a dog in his lifetime, used for hunting, mainly, but most of them were now companions in their old age, the man hesitant to get another in case it outlived him. Young Quil helped Seth buy the needed supplies like leashes, a crate for inside, dishes for the food, a dog bed, and a vet appointment was set for Monday so the bitch that Seth adopted — named Missy, a Rottweiler Shar Pei cross (Rott Pei, Quil had helpfully given him the proper name for the breed of the mutt) could be checked up, seeing as she was due for one.

Seth and Quil now at the store, buying some dog food. The smell was still overwhelming, and mixed in with how all of the other store goers smelled it was nearly unbearable. He could even still smell the products they mopped the floors with. He put the last thing in the cart when he heard a familiar voice. You.

"Quil, shit man, that's her!" Seth whispered excitedly, then listened as you made your way through the aisles, talking about dog food for Cujo.

Quil watched his younger pack mate bounce on his heels as you approached, and tried not to laugh at how excited Seth was getting. The boy turned to face you as soon as you turned the corner, dragging your dad by his hand, a basket in your other hand.

"Oh! It's little Seth!" Alexander pointed out, making you look away from the tins of dog food on the shelf, and give him a friendly grin, dropping your dad’s hand in the process.

"Hello, hello," You greeted, and nodded towards his full trolley, "Stocking up for a vacation?"

Seth turned back at the groups of haphazardly stacked dry kibble bags and wet food cans, and numerous treat packets. Maybe he was going a tiny bit overboard.

"Uh, no," Seth admitted, rubbing the back of his neck with a chuckle, "I'm getting my first dog and I think I got overexcited."

"Oh! Such a spoiled little puppy that will be! Maybe you and miss (Y/N) could take your dogs for walks sometimes! I think she gets sick of her old man slowing her down," Alexander offered, and nudged (Y/N)'s shoulder, "If you need help with the dog too, (Y/N) could teach you a few tricks. Should help her keep herself busy for the next two months."

Seth tried not to smile too hard as he agreed, but noticed that you looked less than pleased, but give him a tight lipped smile nonetheless.

"Dad, grab two dry bags of dog food," You commanded, and your father did your bidding as you somewhat aggressively threw some dog food cans into a basket, managing to dent one of them.

Your father suddenly looked less than pleased with your behaviour as you threw the last can and turned on your heel, shoulder checking him as you walked past him. Alexander looked back at the pair of boys and gave them a tight lipped smile and a small wave before leaving behind his daughter.

Seth cocked his head to the side, trying to drown out the rest of the store goers to listen to you. Quil immediately did the same.

“What in the Gods was that? Ridiculous behaviour for what?” Your father said gruffly, but not unkindly.

"Dadda, I don't want to go for walks with him!" Was the first thing Seth heard you say, which made his heart drop, but he kept on listening anyway.

"Nonsense, he seems nice! A friend wouldn't hurt," Your father tried to reason with you, but you huffed.

"If a friend wouldn't hurt we'd actually live in one place and not move around like nomads." You then let out a soft 'fuck!', most likely stubbing your toe on the stupid boxes near the mouth of aisle 2.

"Well, I'm sure this place is the place. Trust me, tiny child. If it isn't, I'll buy you your dream Dodge Challenger for a late birthday gift." Your father reasoned.

"Don't bullshit me," You snapped back, sounding like you were nearer to the doors.

"I'm not! Matte black Dodge Challenger with red under glow for your birthday, or we live here, I swear it on Cujo's life." Your father pleaded, and you sighed.

"Fine. I'll see if one of the workers knows how to get into contact with him. I'll try to find him on MySpace or Twitter or something." You relented, then the doors opened to the front of the store, and your scent was gone.

Your Father cheered and Quil put Seth into a headlock playfully, messing up his hair, making Seth laugh as he did so.

•••

You sat on your new bed, your dog Cujo, a black Cane Corso who was getting on in his years, shown by the grey fur on his muzzle, resting on the floor next to your bed, not being allowed on any furniture. Your father was doing research in his room.

You picked up a piece of mango and popped it into your mouth as you looked up the name of the place you were staying at on Facebook. You found the profile, and clicked into it, then went straight to followers. You couldn't find any followers with Seth's profile picture, so you went and looked up the name of the school, finding their profile and looking through the followings for Seth. No luck. Even searching his name up you discovered nothing. You stalked his school until you found his name on an old post where he had won an award for a spelling bee, also discovering his last name. Clearwater. Seth Clearwater.

You logged into your MySpace account, and looked for him, and surprisingly found him. His profile picture was a photo of him with a man, standing side by side, grinning.

You found it, and let held your arms up above your head in a victorious manner, looking around the room as if expecting someone to cheer for you, then focussing on your dog.

"See how fucking amazing I am, Cujo? The FBI needs to hire me as a detective," You said, then started scrolling through his profile.

Nothing overly fancy. Just some pictures of him, people you assumed to be his family, and some of nature around the area, alongside some photos of his adventures. You clicked the 'Add Friend' button, and decided to make a new friendship bracelet while you watched movies, heading off to your dad's room to go and ask him to start the bracelet for you.

•••

Seth was currently scrolling through Twitter at his desk as his Xbox 360 started up, Leah lounging on his bed playing Mario on his DS. Technically, he and Leah shared the Xbox, but he just kept it in his room as she didn’t really play it much these days, instead choosing to play his DS. He didn’t mind. Just as long as she stayed in his room so he knew it was safe. Missy was laying halfway under his bed, gnawing at a new chew toy Quil had picked out.

His phone beeped, and a new notification popped up. He walked over and slid onto the bed next to his sister. A new friend request. He looked, and his heart started speeding up as he looked at the profile.

“What?” Leah inquired, hearing the thrumming, looking over his shoulder.

“She added me on MySpace!” Seth told his sister excitedly, showing her the profile picture of you and a black dog, along with your Dad and a woman who looked a bit like you, and accepted your friend request, then started looking through your profile.

There were photos from all around the world. Australia, Sweden, Italy, France. Your father and you were the main focus of your photos, but your nature shots were a sight to behold. There were also some with people that weren’t your father, so maybe friends and relatives. The photos of the woman in your profile picture stopped around a year ago, he noted. Your newest photo was the Welcome to Forks sign, you and a huge black dog posing in front of it, the same one from your profile picture.

A message notification popped up. He opened it, and there was a message from you.

Y/N:

Hey

“Oh my goodness, she messaged me!” Seth nearly squealed, and Leah bit back a laugh at her little brother, knowing that laughing would probably result in him attacking her with a pillow covered in a Spider-Man case.

“Well don’t just ignore it, reply!” Leah urged, and Seth looked at his sister, eyes as wide as saucers.

“What do I say!” Seth panicked, and Leah rolled her eyes, grabbing the iPhone covered in a Spider-Man case and messaging her back.

Seth:

Hey

•••

You blinked at your laptop screen, your friendship bracelet forgotten. You didn’t expect him to reply so fast. You went down to the vending machine just outside of the office about ten minutes ago and he wasn’t there, instead there was a girl at the counter, talking on the phone as she painted her nails. Maybe his shift was over, and he was at home? You didn’t think on it much.

Your fingertips ghosted over the keys, then stopped, instead picking up your phone and logging into MySpace there.

“Dad?” You called out, and he ambled into your room, a sandwich with a bite taken out of it, jerking his head upwards slightly as he chewed.

“Seth messaged me and I don’t know how to reply,” You admitted, and your father chuckled as he came over and sat next to you, trying not to get any crumbs on the bed.

Cujo immediately came over and sat expectantly next to him on the floor, but your father shooed him away. Your baby walked over and laid in his crate, looking offended.

“What do you want to say?” He asked, pulling your phone into his hand, getting ready to type a message for you.

You leaned against his muscly arm, and shrugged. You weren’t very good at holding conversations.

“Why don’t you ask him about his new dog?” Your father suggested and you grinned victoriously, taking back the phone and sending him a message.

Y/N:

How’s things going with preparing for ur dog?

You hummed, feeling content, then sent the message. Seth started typing immediately.

Seth:

She’s good! We picked her up like an hour ago and she’s currently harassing my sister, lol

A photo came through of a dog that looked like a Rottweiler, but was wrinkly, and the tail curved upwards, sitting on the lap of a girl that looked a couple years older than you, playing a DS.

“Oh! Looks like a little Rott Pei! They’re stubborn little fucks,” Your father commented, still eating his sandwich, making you giggle.

Your aunty Lara had one, over in Italy. He tended to chew any shoes left outside, and didn’t like Cujo much.

Seth:

Her name is Missy :)

Y/N:

She’s so cute! Is she a Rott Pei? Dad says they’re stubborn lol

Seth:

Yeah, she is. I’m gonna try and take her for a walk tomorrow. She’s really good on lead, and well socialised. My sister Leah’s coming too, wanna come with?

Before you could type ‘no’, your father snatched your phone and sent a message.

Y/N:

That sounds good, when & where?

“Dad!” You hissed, picking up your stuffed Elmo doll from beside you and assaulting your father with it, making him drop his sandwich.

Cujo wasted no time in scrabbling over and eating it, making you laugh, but you quickly stopped as your phone beeped again, leaning over and grabbing it from your dad’s hand.

Seth:

Tomorrow, like 11am?

We can take out a picnic!

Me and Leah can come pick you up :)

You quickly positioned yourself so you could see Cujo in the background, your dad deciding to hop into the photo as well, holding up both of his thumbs and giving the biggest smile you’d ever seen.

Y/N:

Cujo & I are keen, so’s Dad apparently. See you then!

•••

Leah pinched her little brother’s cheek as he put the phone down, tittering at the way he blushed, the colour in his cheeks and ears becoming more noticeable with the red undertone of his blood rushing to them.

“My baby, all grown up! Going on a date with a girl-”

“-It’s not a date, Leah,” Seth said exasperatedly as he grabbed his phone and messaged Jacob, wanting to let him know first.

Seth:

(Y/N) and I are walking our dogs together tomorrow.

Jacob:

Good job bro :)

You should see if she wants to come to your birthday party tomorrow

Seth blinked. Tomorrow was his birthday. He’d be fifteen, and in two months he’d be starting tenth grade.

Seth:

I forgot about that haha

Are you and Ness coming?

Jacob

Wouldn’t miss it for the world man

I picked out a cool gift but Ness said hers is ‘practical’, or whatever

You know how she is

Seth laughed and sent back a thumbs up emoji, then leaned over and scritched Missy behind her ears, making her wag her tail contentedly. Today was a good day. Tomorrow was going to be even better.

•••

Alexander stood out on the porch of the cabin, facing the sea as he puffed on his Marlboro, the cigarette being his only source of light other than the moon, full and low over the sea.

A movement in the distance, over near some rocks, only just visible in the corner of his eye. His head snapped in the direction of it, his blue eyes nearly glowing in the dark.

Something was staring right back at him, its eyes shining green like a cat’s in the dark. A stare off ensued. Alexander moved ever so slightly, reaching for his crossbow, but the creature then spread its’ wings and took flight, the huge wing span nearly blocking out the moon as it ascended.

Alexander growled and put out his cigarette, dropping it into the metal trash can near his feet. He found what he was looking for. Now it was time to complete the rest of his mission.

•••

Mary Postoak stared at the moon through her kitchen window, opting to watch it as the sink filled up in front of her.

There was a flash of darkness in front of the moon, looking like a huge bird. She gasped, a hand going to her chest. It was bigger than any bird she saw, ever. And the last time she checked; birds didn’t have legs like humans.

A thud was heard in her backyard, and her dogs started barking, making her head for her back door, but a yelp cut her off. She instead turned on her heel, running towards her bedroom and grabbed her rifle, then ran through the hallway, throwing open the back door and loading the rifle.

She grabbed the flashlight from her deck table, and turned it on, shining it toward the scene, and gasped.

Something was hunkered over her dog, feeding from it. Upon hearing her, it looked up, blood covering its lower lip. It was hideous. Pale skin, and two enormous wings. It stood up at its full height, nearly ten feet, and stepped forward, making her drop her torch and point her rifle at it.

She fired it once, hitting it square in the chest. It growled, then lunged for the woman, attacking her before she could even scream.

§§§

Fun fact lol, Missy & Cujo are based on dogs I've owned. Again, not proofread so please kindly point out any mistakes!

CONTRARY - FINN SHELBY X READER; PART 47

PUBLISHED: 26/07/2022

(I forgot to copy some chapters onto here shhh)

THIRD PERSON'S POV

You woke up to an urgent pulling of your hair, and sat up. One of the twins. Isaac. He gave you a cuddle, and you held him a bit tighter than necessary, then got out of bed, balancing him on your hip. You headed into the bathroom, washing your face, and wiping Isaac's with a baby wipe. The house was painfully quiet.

You poked your head into the nursery as you passed it. Rosalie was gone. Finn probably had her. Or Isiah. He had come to stay at yours for a bit. It was too painful for him to stay there, at the house that he and Ezzie had made their own. You didn't blame him. You hadn't been in Bonnie's apartment or vardo yet. You didn't want to.

You headed downstairs, sighing at the fact that there was no noise. Saoirse would usually be humming, or giggling, or reading a story to the babies and animals, or playing an instrument, or singing, or talking. Just making noise. But the only noise was the cat meowing. You shook your head to rid yourself of the sad thoughts, not wanting to ruin your day before it started.

You hummed, although it wasn't nearly as nice as Saoirse used to, and entered the kitchen, where your daughter was up in her high chair, and your other son was sat at the table, both of them eating toast. Your husband was sat with a vacant look on his face. He looked more than tired. He looked exhausted, and you knew it wasn't just a physical one. Finn had lost two of his best mates in the one go.

"Finn?" You said softly, putting Isaac next to Finley, who gladly grabbed some of his brother's honey covered toast, even after Finley tried to swat his hands away.

"Just — tired," Finn explained hoarsely, and you pursed your lips and nodded.

You made your way around the table to your husband, and leaned down, giving him a quick kiss, then pulled him into a tight hug.

Finn placed a hand on your knee, and squeezed it thrice, grabbing his coffee with his other hand.

"I love you too," You replied, grabbing the mug next to his own and sipping it, knowing it was meant for you.

"You staying home again?" Finn asked, feeling a bit more normal after his cry.

"Yeah, I think Jeremiah has things to do so one of the girls and I will be watching Jeremy and Bon-Bon." You explained, and your husband nodded.

Isiah needed a bit more help with the babies now that Ezzie was gone, and you were all too willing to help out with your niece and nephew, and so was the girls from your netball team. They were all absolute godsends, always bringing around food and offering to watch the babies and taking Saoirse to and from school, even though it was all out of their way.

"It's Poll's birthday today," Finn informed you, and you swore, then walked over to the fridge, grabbing a small box off of the top of it.

"Can you give her this just in case I don't see her?" You asked, and Finn nodded.

Rosalie, now done with her toast, squealed, wanting to get down.

"No, you're in baby jail because you keep on opening the baby gates!" Finn chastised his daughter, wagging a finger in her direction, and Rosalie giggled.

"Oh, Finn, don't put her in baby jail! She's just exploring, right ring-a-round the Rosie?" You defended jokingly, going and getting your daughter out of your chair, bringing her over to sit on your lap.

Finn reached over and grabbed the boys' toast, and told them to come around the table to the three of you. They did so. Finn balanced the pair of them on his legs, and listened as Rosalie babbled to the twins, and Finley babbled back to her, throwing in some of his big boy vocabulary in there, telling her about his adventures with 'Untle Tarl' in the 'orch' (they picked 'appas' together, according to Finley).

You scolded Finley when he said a certain four letter word starting with 'f', Finn just laughing, knowing that his uncle Arthur most likely taught him it (you had walked into Linda and Arthur's once and caught Arthur encouraging Finley to swear — "Come on, Finley, say 'fuck' and I'll give you a chocolate!" "...Buck." "Close enough, mate.")

"We'll get through this," You told your husband, who nodded, but you weren't sure how you would or how long it was going to take.

You just knew that you'd get through it somehow.

•••

Thomas and Polly approached the group gathered in Charlie's yard.

"Happy birthday, Poll," Finn greeted, giving his aunt roses and a kiss on the cheek.

He then fished around in his pockets and gave her the box.

"From (Y/N) and the rest," He said, then stepped away from Polly, and Curly approached her.

"You grow grand in the horse shit, Poll," He congratulated in his own little way.

"Curly, pour some beer, aye?" Tommy asked, and Curly scuttled off to do it.

"The train to London leaves in an hour. Arthur, Michael, you're coming with me," Tommy said, trying to light his smoke.

"Tommy, I have to take Gina to the hospital today." Michael interjected, and Finn tried not to roll his eyes.

"A week ago, three members of our family were killed by Jimmy McCavern. The man we're going to speak to in London is establishing a relationship with Jimmy McCavern," Tommy took the beer that Curly offered, "So, cancel your appointments, and Ada can take Gina to the hospital."

Isiah bristled at this information, and Finn put a hand on his shoulder. He wanted to go with them too, but he knew that it wasn't the right time, or that he wasn't the best man for it.

"'Cause that's what women do," Arthur added, making Isiah scoff as he took a draw from his cigarette.

"Clean that shit off your shoes before you get in me car, aye?" Tommy told his cousin, taking a puff of his own cigarette.

Michael looked at him in a way that said that he wasn't impressed with his older cousin.

"Michael, they will give it and give it until your case is proven, and then they'll take it. From you, but mainly from me." Polly said, looking at her son, then at her nephew.

"Polly, you go to the hospital and speak to Aberama Gold. You tell him there is a strategy in place to avenge the death of his son and daughter, so not to do anything rash. And take with you the heartfelt condolences of the whole family," Tommy instructed his aunt, making Isiah frown.

Isiah knew Tommy meant his words, that he was truly sorry that Esmeralda and Bonnie had died, but couldn't the man say it with a bit more emotion?

"Why me?" Polly questioned as Tommy took a sip of his beer.

"Because Aberama Gold is in love with you. He even got an haircut," Tommy replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, "And the smell of your perfume might help ease his pain."

Finn's mind drifted to you teasing him about Aberama being his 'favourite uncle', and he fought the urge to snicker.

"Tommy, I'm forty-five years old today." Polly informed her nephew, clearly not having it.

"Forty-five years old and still breaking hearts, eh?" Tommy said, and Arthur said a 'yeah' in agreement.

"To Polly," Tommy announced, raising his glass.

Everyone else followed suit, raising a toast for the matriarch of the family.

"Curly, organise two wagons to take the souls of Esmeralda and Bonnie Gold's souls to heaven," Tommy commanded, and Curly nodded, "Isiah, fetch his boxing gloves from the gym to burn with his body. Grab anything from your house that Esmeralda would want gone up in the smoke with her."

"Ezzie," Isiah muttered softly, knowing how much his wife hated being called by her full name.

Finn clapped Isiah on the shoulder, and led his best mate to his car, not wanting to leave him alone.

•••

You bounced Rosalie and Bonnibel on your knees as you read them a story, the boys drawing on a piece of paper with Dorothy. A car pulled up outside, and the dogs started barking. Finn Junior hopped up onto the bay window seat to see who it was.

Dottie walked over to the window to see who it was.

"Mary Bone and her baby," She announced, and grabbed the girls off of you, allowing to go and answer the door and tell the dogs to stop barking.

Mary came up the walk, the setting sun making her look all the more gorgeous, cradling a baby wrapped in a purple blanket. You welcomed her in, and ushered her to the kitchen, putting on the kettle for the pair of you.

"Is this bubby then? Oh, gorgeous!" You cooed, and she chuckled, turning the baby in her arms so you could see them better.

"Her name is Cara," Mary stated, and you cooed even more, telling her how pretty and romantic her name sounded.

"She's going to be a heartbreaker when she gets older," You said jokingly, going and grabbing two teacups and putting sugar and teabags in them.

"Hope not — I hope she'll be like her father, falling in love with the one woman and staying with her," Mary replied, and you grinned at her.

"Who's the father? You didn't tell me you were in love!" You complained, going and grabbing the biscuits from the pantry.

"I'm not the one he's in love with," Mary admitted, and you clucked your tongue sympathetically.

"Oh, Mary. Any man would be lucky to have you," You consoled, and grabbed the chocolate you stashed earlier, then going and sitting back across from her, snapping it in half and giving her the big piece.

She took it gratefully, and you pulled over Jeremy and Bon-Bon's stroller, Mary setting Cara down in it after you reclined the back of it. You got up and poured the now boiled water into the teacups, and milk, then carried them back over to the table, setting Mary's down in front of her.

"I didn't just pop around for a visit," Mary said as you settled back into your own chair.

"Oh?" You asked, confused, looking over at the woman as she rocked her child back and forth in the pram.

You picked up your teacup and took a sip.

"Cara; she's," Mary began, but paused, then sighed, looking away from you, "She's Finn's."

You gasped, and your grip on your teacup loosened, sending it clattering onto the table, sending lukewarm liquid pouring across the table and into your lap.

"What?" You questioned, your voice quiet, eyes narrowed at the woman across from you.

"She's Finn's," Mary repeated, still not looking at you.

"How dare you," You said through gritted teeth, standing up and making you way around the table to her, stopping in front of her.

She still didn't look at you.

"As if Finn would touch the likes of you — He has a wife. My husband would never," You spat, "And the next time you accuse my husband of that shit, you look me square in the eye."

Mary looked at you, and smirked, "Well then maybe you don't really know your husband, because on those nights you'd stay home while he and Isiah were out drinkin', he'd come and seek me out, and we'd head to darkest corners of the bar."

You scoffed, rolling your eyes as you picked up the teacup in front of Mary.

"I'm serious, (Y/N)." Mary continued, standing up, following you across the room to the sink, "He wanted to feel the touch of a real woman. One he wasn't forced to marry."

"Well, he seems to enjoy my touch, we've got three kids to show for it," You snarked, not missing a beat, turning to face Mary, "And you'd hardly be able to call yourself a real woman after saying you slept with my husband."

"Oh, but I am," She replied, feeling terribly bold, "See, the difference between me and you, (Y/N), is that you're a girl, and I'm a woman. You dress yourself in whatever's fashionable, change with the trends you know, you paint your nails silly colours-"

"Yellow's my favourite colour," You interjected quietly, looking down at your now cracked nail polish.

"-And you're still graceless. Awkward. However, I, the proper woman I am, I don't keep up with the styles. I dress in clothes that suit me and my body, I don't change just because something new is in style it all cycles back anyway, I paint my nails sensible colours, not childish yellow, of all things, and I have grace only you — and other little girls — could dream of," Mary finished, and you looked down at the ground.

What she said was true. She was five years your senior, three years Finn's senior. She was Ezzie's friend first, but got roped into your friend group easily. You never got on with her as well as the others, just because of your age difference, and partly because you were jealous of her.

She never walked into a room, she floated, her dress billowing around her, she never talked, she chimed, her voice sounds so angelic that it would be a crime to say she just talked, and every move she made was so precise, so calculated, that you'd think she was dancing. She never missed a beat, stepped out of formation. She was perfect, in every sense of the word.

Now that you were thinking about it, Finn could've slept with her. You wouldn't blame your husband, either, if you were single and she swung your way you'd try to bed her without hesitation.

She was gorgeous. You doubted her story of her sleeping with Finn a little less now.

"Here's what we're going to do," You said abruptly, wanting to stop your train of thought before it got worse, "We're going to get a blood test, to see if the baby has a blood type that could make her Finn's daughter. If she does happen to have a blood type that could make her my husband's daughter, then we're going to get Polly Gray to do paternity test. Our way. The gypsy way."

Mary nodded.

"If, and that's a big if, Cara is Finn's daughter, then I'll make sure you get money. I'm bad but I'm not fucking cruel," You reassured her, then dipped your finger in her tea.

After finding that it was lukewarm, no longer boiling hot, you threw it on her, the soggy teabag hitting her square in the face.

"Now, you absolute harlot, get the fuck out of my house before I grab a knife from the drawer and stab you with it," You threatened, placing the teacup into the sink, and she nodded, scurrying across the room and picking up her daughter, then hurrying out of your house.

You watched her leave out the window, and sighed, going over to the table and packing everything up, washing up the teacups and wiping up the spilt tea with a wet rag. You sniffled as you did so.

"Fuck Mary Bone, fuck her and her being so fuckable — and fuck anyone else who looked at my husband!" You ranted to the four walls as you scrubbed at the floor violently, then threw the rag up into the sink.

You were too mad to cheer when it made it in.

"Dot, you alright in there? I just need a minute!" You called out, your voice cracking as you did so.

"Yeah, they're all getting tired now, you're right!" Dorothy hollered back, packing up some of the toys the kids were using.

You thanked God that you had a friend like Dot, then the phone rang. You sprung up to answer it.

"Hello?" You croaked, and winced at how bad you sounded.

"(Y/N)! Baby!" Finn shouted, and you sighed, knowing your husband was probably off his face on booze and snow, "Solve an argument between me and Billy here, yeah? Now, when you mop, you - you vacuum the floors first, right?"

"Yes, Finn, you vacuum the floors first," You huffed, wiping your eyes with the back of your hand.

Finn whooped over the other side of the phone, "I told him that! Hey — you don't sound too good. D'ya need me home?"

"I'm fine, you stay out," You reassured your husband, not wanting him to come home yet.

"Okay. Love you, see ya when I lay eyes on ya next," Finn said, then hung up the phone before you could even reply.

You tsked, and sighed, heading out of the kitchen and up to your room to change clothes.

•••

Finn stumbled into the stables, to the cot you always had set up for him when he came home shitfaced. He woke up still drunk this morning, so he decided that it was best to sleep it off  before going to you and the kids. He had to tell you that Tommy wanted Billy to stay with you and him, so he could keep an eye on the man.

Finn heard someone clear their throat, and he looked up. You were sat on the cot, an unimpressed look on your face.

"Hi," Finn greeted quietly, and you gestured to the bale of hay next to you.

He went and sat there, confused. Usually you'd just leave him be.

"Finn, in ten days' time, you're getting a blood test because Mary Bone came here yesterday and said that her new baby was yours," You told your husband, not wanting to beat around the bush.

"What?" Finn asked, feeling dread creep up inside of him.

"She said you slept with her, and that her child is yours," You repeated, looking at your husband, "She's wrong though, isn't she?"

Finn studied your poker face, and shrugged, making your jaw drop.

"I'm fairly sure she's not," He said hurriedly, "But I'm usually too shitfaced to remember anything."

"Finn Theo Shelby!" You thundered, "If you got her up the duff I'm taking the kids on the road!"

Finn stood up, albeit with a struggle.

"You can't do that to my kids!" He protested, and you scoffed.

"I can and I will," You challenged, "I've got more right over them than you do, and you know it."

Finn stayed silent, mulling over your words.

"And if you have a problem with it, then you should go to Tommy, although I don't think Tommy would care about it," You snapped, and Finn looked utterly wounded.

You touched a nerve. You knew it.

"Get out," Finn hissed, and, instead of apologising, you plumped Finn's pillow and walked out of the barn, leaving your husband there in his misery.

§§§

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CONTRARY - FINN SHELBY X READER; PART 40

PUBLISHED: 16/07/2022

Part 1

MASTERLIST

TAGLIST

THIRD PERSON'S POV

You headed into the changing rooms, chattering to your teammates about how you won the game. Your netball shoes were perfect, having gel insoles. Finn knew what he was doing when he got them for you as a gift. You'd have to tell him when you meet up with him and Saoirse after you were done changing.

You were about to head into a stall, when someone tapped your shoulder. You turned around to see Dinah standing there, her braids up in a ponytail today.

"You grab the right sized dress today?" She  asked quietly, and you scrunched your eyebrows together in confusion.

"Yeah, of course," You replied equally as low.

"It's getting a bit tight, especially around the midriff," She advised you, making you scowl as you stepped into the stall and slammed the door shut behind you.

You looked at yourself in the mirror that hung up behind the door. Your stomach was bigger. But, you ate a lot, and you didn't do nearly as much walking as you did when you were a traveller. That would be why.

You'd tell Dinah that and make her apologise, you decided as you quickly changed.

•••

You and Polly sat at a table in a small café, heading there for your lunch break. Finn was outside, finishing off his smoke.

You tapped your fingers against your teacup, feeling content. Polly eyed you as you looked out of the window, lost in thought.

"Polly," You began, sounding far away.

Polly gave a hum of acknowledgment before finishing off her tea.

"You and my father — What's going on there?" You questioned softly, looking at Polly.

Polly shifted in her seat, not uncomfortable with the question, just caught off guard.

"We've got a thing," She admitted confidently, and you grinned at the woman.

"In your forties and still breaking hearts," You teased, making her smile, a faint pink tinting her cheeks.

Finn came back in, and slid into the booth next to you. You looked down at your cup, then took a sip and slid it over to Polly, who looked surprised.

"I've been eating more and someone even said that my stomach looked bigger. I don't want to go to the doctor if I'm not actually there yet. I don't think I am. I don't know if I'll ever be there. My parents, both of them, they don't have babies easily," You explained, dropping your voice low on that last piece of information, and Polly nodded understandingly as she grasped your cup.

Aberama had told her that. Finn had no idea that Aberama struggled, but seeing how Ezzie, Bonnie, and Saoirse were all spaced out it made sense. Traveller couples usually popped out a baby every year or so.

Finn slipped his hand into yours, and squeezed it three times, watching as his aunt looked at your tea leaves. He felt somewhat nervous. He thought that maybe you were pregnant; he noticed small changes, like the way you always got sick, and the way that everything made you feel sick. He noticed that you ate more and that you gained weight.

"You didn't tell me that," Finn murmured to you, feeling a bit disappointed that you failed to mention it.

"We'll talk about it later," You brushed him off, wanting to focus on what was happening now.

He nodded. He wanted kids, and he thought you did too, but that little tidbit that you (and anyone else who knew your family history) failed to mention threw him off, just a bit.

"What do you think, Finn?" Polly asked her nephew as she sat down your teacup.

"I think she's expecting," Finn answered honestly, making you look at him funny.

"I noticed that your," Finn trailed off and cupped his hands over his chest, as if he were holding two things up, making you snort and Polly roll her eyes at her nephew, "They got bigger."

"Boy. You could've just said her tits got bigger. And of course that's the first fucking thing you noticed. Boys," Polly commented, and you chuckled, bouncing your leg.

Polly's crimson lips curled into a smile.

"Congratulations. You're in the family way," Polly announced, and you felt your mouth go dry.

Finn felt breathless, as if he ran a marathon. He brought your now shaky hand up to his mouth, brushing it against his lips gently.

Ada and Ezzie were definitely going to kill the pair of you, and throw your bodies into the cut.

•••

You and Finn sat in your kitchen on the floor between the bench and the island, cups of tea and a plate of biscuits between the pair of you.

It was closer to sunrise than sunset, and the pair of you should've well and truly been asleep by now, but a visit to your family healers had you feeling fretful. And hopeful. You absentmindedly put a hand on your stomach, patting it. You hand told anyone that you were expecting, yet.

"Did you really think you wouldn't have a baby until later?" Finn asked softly, grabbing a biscuit off of the plate.

"Yes," You admitted, looking away from him, finding the cupboard handle very interesting, "I was ten years coming, Finn. Ezzie came easily but Bonnie didn't. After Bonnie, they kept trying. Another big gap there. Twelve years. And it certainly wasn't Rose who was the problem. The healers even said so."

Finn nodded, and considered reaching out to touch you, to reassure you some way, but decided against it. If he started reassuring you he wouldn't get out what he needed to ask.

"Did you ever think of telling me that you didn't think you'd have babies easily?" Finn questioned, leaning back on his palms.

You snapped your head in your husband's direction, narrowing your eyes.

"Fucking — Tommy knew. And he still forced us to marry. I don't even know why you're still on about the bastard, the healers said I'd be fine to get pregnant after this one. That I won't have any problems. That is that." You spat, and Finn's jaw clenched.

Fucking Tommy. He could have the big, happy family he wanted but would leave his brother to struggle if it came down to it. Unfair. It always was, Finn always got the short end of the stick. It didn't matter if you couldn't have kids. You could always adopt. What mattered is that Tommy didn't tell him something, yet again.

"Are you mad at me?" You asked your husband as you dipped a biscuit into your tea.

Finn didn't miss the vulnerable tone hanging off your words.

"Darling, of course not," Finn replied hurriedly, truthfully, his words like a bandage that stopped the guilt flowing from your wound.

He shuffled over and knelt in front of you, pulling you into a tight hug. You returned it, grasping his night shirt so tightly that you were slightly scared you might rip it.

"I love you," He mumbled against the crook of your neck, his breath hot and the words heavy.

"I love you too," You murmured in reply, and tried not to let your eyes fill up with tears.

You stayed like that until your knuckles couldn't take being curled up anymore, and released your husband, who shifted back so he was sitting on his heels.

It didn't last long, because he moved forward and tenderly placed his lips on yours, hands cupping the sides of your face as he did so. He wanted contact. To reassure you that he loved you, like he should've done earlier on.

You continued your tender touches and soft words well into the night, even after you moved up into your bedroom, your tea gone cold and poured down the sink and biscuits put back into the container, to be worried about another day.

§§§

we've got a proper pregnancy confirmation from none other than THE Polly Gray

Although you guys probably knew from last chapter lmao

I know my chapters are shorter than usual but you guys will get the long chapters again once I start writing about s5

Love y'all ❤️

- Sunflower x

TAGLIST

@meadownicolee

@toothlessmcleod

@im-your-possession

@bethabear12

@paisley-37

@shelundeadxxxx

@bluehairdie

@krillfromsky

@cucumberfingefsandwiches

NEXT PART

Part 41