Avos'

𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬

EVERYONE KNOWS THE EXTENT OF THOMAS MICHAEL SHELBY'S INTELLECT.

Tommy Shelby is the kind of man to come from dirt, battle against his circumstance, and rise to prominence despite all the odds. Yes, he's a man to be revered in this aspect, and it's because of his intellect.

Sometimes, lying in bed at night after all the violence and deception he sees in his day to day, he marvels at how he's the only one that can see it.

Everything that happens around him, he can predict it. He can see stars forming constellations that no one else has discovered. He can hear the faint music haunting the background of the day that no one else can hear. He can see a thin, straight line with little flags marking every deception and every victory.

It's like chess, and he's the master of it. That's what everyone is, a piece of the game- some kings here, some queens, knights, rooks, and mostly pawns- and he always wins the game.

For a while, he let his family become those thick, carved white pieces. He let himself pick them up at his will, used them to knock his opponents off-balance, marched his stone army further into enemy territory.

And he hates himself for it. The self-loathing he feels is so deep, and every crevice is filled with regret. There are many things he can regret- the killings, the lies, the bombings- but he doesn't regret any of them.

He regrets the decision to unknowingly force Arthur and John to kill their old school teacher. He regrets the decision to use Lizzie to lure Angel Changretta to death. He regrets the decision to knowingly enter a full-frontal vendetta with Luca Changretta because of what it led to.

It wasn't smart. It wasn't good for business, no matter how clever it seemed at the time. It wasn't worth it.

It was business.

Grace.

His wife, the only woman who's ever seen him, understood his ruthlessness, demanded more from him than anyone ever has before is gone.

His dearly-departed, that's his biggest regret. The very memory of her still stings, the way his four-year-old son still calls out for her, the reason he lays in bed at night- lonely and cold- wishing he could take it all back.

His only saving grace, his only reason for being able to go on is his family, specifically the one who's never turned on him or betrayed him.

His prize, the first love of his life, his little sister, his everything.

Grissy.

The only woman who has been the exception to the rule. It's no secret to anyone that she's his favorite. She's his light in the dark. He looks at her, and he sees their mother with her thick, black curls and her straight nose. He looks at her, and he sees himself. He looks at her eyes that are identical to his- the twins that never were- and he sees all that he could be.

Grissy is everything good the world has to offer, the resilience that defines the very Shelby name.

Even heartbroken and riddled with depression, she's managed to overcome and make something special out of her life.

But fuck, he never predicted her to be put back together by Alfie fucking Solomons.

He doesn't bother to knock as he enters the grand home she shares with Alfie, too grand for even his now refined taste. The walls are decorated with dark colors, dark colors that are cloaked with portraits of nature scenes and antique collections. It's cluttered, unlike his home, and he's sure his sister has everything to do with it.