Summary: Teddy refused to listen to Tommy and has put herself in the crossfire. After getting shot, she has to go to Adaâs house to get cleaned up, but her sister wonât let get off so easy
(gif by @perioddramasource)
A/N: Iâll be completely honest: I found this request in my notes but itâs OLD so I have no idea who requested this, when or why, or any details. BUT this did get me thinking and @hb-writes and I agreed that we need more Ada out here. So here we are: episode 1 of season 5, but instead of Finn getting shot, Teddyâs getting shot instead. I do have another one thatâs kinda around the same time and would work as a sequel to this one: Miss Shelby. This would be set a few months previous.
Words: 2159
*****
Teddy hadnât thought it through. In the next 48 hours that were to come, she would tell her brothers over and over again that she knew what she was doing and that she was aware of the risks and that she had thought in through. But she really didnâtâ.
Teddy had gone to Limehouse, London, after being explicitly forbidden to do so. Maybe she just wanted to do it anyway. Maybe sheâd done it because sheâd been explicitly told not to. Either way, after Finn had told Isiah he couldnât, Teddy had agreed to go. Abarama didnât care; he liked Teddy and he was happy to have her by his side. She was one of the best shots in the family.
As theyâd made their way through the crowd of kids, underneath the pretty lanterns almost obscured through the smoke and dirt of the place, Teddy and Abarama had followed Isiah into one of the decaying buildings. With one swift kick, heâd forced the door open. Teddy had sighed, tried to banish the image of her disapproving brothers from her mind, and followed inside.
Theyâd been carrying out an assassination, because Tommy had ordered them to âintroduce themselvesâ to the criminals and local gangs of Limehouse. Heâd asked Abarama to do the job for them, and Isiah had offered a helping hand. Naturally, Finn heard of it first and had wanted to help, but eventually thought better of it. Teddy had not.
âSo, a pimp, right?â the youngest Shelby had asked, as theyâd passed by dozens of shocked women left and right. Maybe it was because she was a woman, but somehow that made the task a lot easier. Some of these women were not women at all: they were girls, and Teddy had gripped her gun even harder.
And there heâd been: behind a red curtain. A tiny little girl had pointed them to him. And then everything had happened too fast. The first shot had come unexpectedly through the door. Theyâd crouched down low, but the second one came fast. Thank God for Abarama Gold and his gypsy magic of being able to walk through walls. And then it was done.
It had taken a while for Teddy to realize the second bullet had hit her.
*****
Everything was a blur after that. Ignoring Teddyâs protests, they were taking her to Adaâs apartment. Abarama simply picked her up and carried her up the stairs like she hardly weighed a thing. Once upstairs, Isiah stood still for a moment, looking around the apartment and admired all the fancy things acquired by the eldest Shelby daughter over the years. Teddy only worried about her reaction if they were to ruin any of said fancy things.
âPut something down for the blood,â Teddy hissed, âMy sisterâll fucking kill me.â
Isiah knocked over a vase in the process, âFuck.â But Teddy reassured him, âArthur gave her that, and sheâs always fucking hated it. Donât worry.â
âNo, do, indeed, worry,â a booming familiar voice came from the corridor and Ada entered the room. With a sigh, Abarama tossed the youngest Shelby onto the couch. Teddy cursed and Abarama ordered, âGet her some booze.â
âWhy?â Ada demanded, now joining them. Teddy tried her very best not to meet her sisterâs eye, but she had this thing she did which made it almost impossible for anyone to ignore her. Aunt Polly used to do the same thing. Suddenly, Teddy didnât feel so grown up with her 20 years of age now but felt very small again. Where the fuck was that man with the booze?
Thank fuck Isiah appeared with a bottle, only for Ada to snatch it out of his hands before it could reach Teddy. âFucking hell, Ada,â she groaned, âI need that!â
She held the bottle just inches away from Teddyâs grasp, âNot before you tell me what happened.â
âNothing happened!â Teddy tried to reach for it, but was yanked back by Abarama, who told her, âYouâre going to rip that bullet through. Sit still.â
âNothing happened, but somehow you still ended up with a bullet in your arm. Thatâs funny, isnât it, Mr. Gold?â Ada glared daggers at both gentlemen present.
âIâll go get Finn,â Isiah mumbled, while quietly making his exit. He didnât want to get caught in the crossfire. Actual bullets he could deal with; feuding Shelby sisters he could not.
âIt wasnât his fault, Ada,â she groaned, âI volunteered.â
âOf course, you fucking volunteered. You know, even since you were eight years old, you always fuckingâŠâ
âAlright! Can you please do the whole fucking speech afterwards? I need Mr. Gold here to take out the bullet. So, Ada, please, just give me the fucking bottle!â
With her signature eyeroll, Ada handed her little sister the gin, âJust wait âtill I tell Tommy about this.â
Teddy opened her mouth to protest, but Abarama had taken her arm and started feeling around for the bullet. It took everything in her not to scream. But sheâd be damned if sheâd give her sister the satisfaction.
âMiss Shelby,â Mr. Gold said conversationally, âIâm afraid Iâm going to have to ask you to restrain your sister.â
âI will be doing no such thing,â Ada took the bottle from Teddyâs hands and took a sip, âShe made her bed, she can fucking lie in it.â
âAda!â
âI mean it, Teddy. Iâve had enough. I go day and night worrying about a brother ending up dead, and now I have to worry about you too? No, fuck it. You can chop that arm off, Mr. Gold, for all I care. Might save her from the noose.â
She seemed genuinely angry, and Teddy was too surprised to come up with a witty reply.
Seconds later, Finn stormed in, with Isiah hot on his heels. âTeddy, what the fuck!â he bellowed.
âSpare me. Ada already did,â Teddy ground out, but when she looked up, Ada was gone. She wasnât given much time to process it all though, because Abarama ordered Finn to take hold of his little sister.
âAre you ready?â he asked, throwing some of Adaâs most expensive gin onto his hands.
âNo, but hajt.â
Teddy felt Finnâs arms tighten around her, first like a hug, then like a chokehold. Teddy threw her head back and silently prayed to the Madonna. At first she didnât feel much, but then the pain starting cutting through her. She clenched her teeth and hissed.
âLook at your sister, man,â Isiah laughed. âMaybe she should be the new Peaky boy, eh?â
âShut up,â Finn replied from behind her, as Abarama was still digging into her arm, âItâs not like Tommyâll let her live after this.â
Teddy let out a sudden scream as Abarama tugged at her arm. âDo you even know what youâre doing? Teddy called out, âIâm not a fucking horse you know!â He pressed on the skin again to persuade the bullet to move, by way of reply. And Teddy let out another, âTu beng,â through her teeth.
Abarama only laughed at it, and added, âWell, the horse did die. Finn, hold her tighter. Now stop talking, bitta chavi.â And then he took the blade and cut open her arm, and Teddy didnât have much to say anymore.
And after a while, âGot it!â He held the bullet up proudly.
Finn slapped Teddy proudly on her back and his little sister grinned up at him. Apparently, he had forgiven her: that was one brother down. Unfortunately, thatâs when Ada came back in and ordered them all to get out. Teddy got up to leave as well, but when she met Adaâs gaze, something told her to sit back down again.
âIâm sorry, sister. They broke Arthurâs vase,â Teddy took another swig of the gin. She pulled a face: she really did prefer whiskey. Â
âFuck the vase,â her sister sat down next to her, âAnd fuck you! What did I tell you! And what did Tommy tell you?â
âPlease, Ada, not nowâŠâ
Angrily, Ada took the bottle from her once again and snarled, âClose your eyes.â
âWhat? whyâŠâ But then the elder Shelby splashed some of its contents onto her arm and Teddy nearly fainted. She screamed something feral and high-pitched, and then she slumped forwards into Adaâs arms.
âSterilization,â her sister explained, dryly. âServes you right.â
Teddy tried to breathe again and protested, âFuck, Ada! What the fuckâŠâ But she never got to finish that sentence either. Ada slapped her once, hard. Then she sat back and looked at her sister with a kind of fury that was almost unfamiliar to Teddy.
âTommy doesnât need toâŠâ
âOh, heâll know.â
Teddy scoffed and rolled her eyes, which earner her another slap.
âAda, whyâŠâ And a third slap. Finally, Teddy shut her mouth.
After a few moments of silence, in which Ada tried to compose herself, she said, âListen to me, you fucking bone-headed little devil, we Shelbyâs donât get involved. We let others do that for us. And donât even think about calling me a âsocialiteâ again, because I will slap you again.â
Teddy held up a hand in defeat. She had no intention of getting hit again. Her head was still spinning.
âWe have a chance,â her sister continued, âBecause Tommy has given us a chance. We have money and we have power, and weâve left our past life behind us. And youâve got a precious, albeit wasted, young life ahead of you, Teddy! Three inches to the left, and that wouldâve been gone.â
âThree inches to the right thoughâŠâ
Ada held up a hand but decided against it, âListen to me, Teddy, youâve got nothing to prove. You have got nothing to prove.â
Teddy looked down and sighed, âBut I do, though. Iâm not like you, Ada. I never will be.â
âI know,â she sighed from the soul. âYou never were.â
âNo, I meanâŠâ she groaned. This wasnât easy to explain. Because even though they were sisters, they never had much in common. And it had never been easy for them to talk about things, because oftentimes it felt like they didnât speak the same language.
âIâm notâŠâ Teddy started, but she was lost for words once again. She wanted to tell her she could never become a lady like Ada could. Sheâd never know how to behave in polite society, even if she wanted to. She only knew the life her brothers led when she was little, and it was all she ever wanted to be. But if she was really honest; it was all she could be. She wasnât smart like Ada, or pretty like Ada, or stoic like Ada⊠She wasnât anything: just fuck-up Teddy.
But Ada understood, âYouâre still so young, Teddy. You can learn all of that. But you wonât if you get yourself killed.â
âYeah, I knowâŠâ Teddy shrugged, âI just want to show them I can do it. Even though Iâm the youngest. Even though Iâm a girl.â
âSweetheart, no one is doubting you can.â
âTommy is.â
Ada burst out laughing, âTommy is going to thrash you, you do know that, right? Just like youâre seven years old again, because youâre acting like a bloody child!â
Teddy scoffed again and rolled her eyes. She was not looking forwards to that confrontation.
Ada looked at her little sister and softened. She thought about how she was when she was little, so stubborn too, but also still adorable somehow too. To her, she still looked the same. And somehow all of this, all of the Shelby drama, all the killing and all the danger, was bearable if only they could be certain that Teddy would be safe. If only they could make sure no harm would come to her, it would be worth it. Ada knew Tommy felt the same. Everything was permissible and anything was bearable, if it meant they could keep her out of it all. But somehow, they still had failed. She was the one thing they loved most, and they had failed her. But she couldnât tell her that. And so. Ada asked her the one thing she was most afraid to ask, âTeddy, did you kill a man?â
âNo, but I wish I had,â the stubborn thing grumbled.
âJesus Christ, Teddy!â
âI mean it, Ada. He was fucking selling kids. Kids, Ada!â
âListen, Iâm glad the fucker is dead, but I do not want you involved, alright? Teddy, not you!â
âWhy not me?!â
âBecause I cannot lose you too! And⊠I worry about you, alright?â
Teddy blinked, âAlright.â They were uncomfortably silent for a while, âAlright, I get it. Iâll be more careful, Ada, I promise.â
Ada took another sip of the gin and handed it to her little sister, âWell, this has taken years off my life.â They smiled at each other
And then a cheeky grin spread across Teddyâs face, âDoes that mean you love me, Ada? Because I think it doesâŠâ
âFuck you.â
*****
