EYES LIKE RAZORS

(126)

"Everyone, meet Ruby Shelby," Tommy announces as he enters the foyer of arrow house, his new baby girl bundled carefully in his arms.

"She's adorable," Ada coos.

"It's lucky she took after Lizzie in that aspect, isn't it?" Ash inputs, cheekily grinning at Tommy when he shoots him a quick glare, before going back to softly looking down at his daughter.

"How is Lizzie?" Chloe questions.

"She's doing well, resting at the moment," Tommy responds, as Charles comes to stand beside him, jumping up trying to get a look at his new little sister.

"Ruby, like a diamond." Charles giggles, "my little diamond."

Tommy crouches down so Charles could place a kiss on Rubys forehead, making sure she was secure in his arms as he manoeuvred himself.

"They don't do an awful lot, do they?" Ash whispers to Edmund, "babies are quite lazy."

Edmund rolls his eyes and pinches Ashtons arm in response, making the man behind him start whining about being under appreciated in the friendship.

"Fuck off." Ed says.

"That's not what you were saying when I was in hospital," Ash smirks, "you love me."

"I wish you kept the ability of staying fucking quiet." Edmund groans.

"You wouldn't know what to do without me." Ashton says, hugging Edmunds arm and resting his head on his shoulder.

"Get off me you twit." Edmund states, shoving the man off of him.

Chloe glanced to her side, where Madison and Arthur were both staring at their new niece.

"That is going to be the most protected child in the world," Hugo whispers to her.

"I don't know, I think you currently hold that title, hun." Chloe responds.

-

"I understand you don't want to get involved in politics, but are you not even going to vote? Show your support." Polly questions.

"But I don't support what's happening, and I've made that very clear." Madi responds.

"He's your brother, we need to present a united front." Polly states.

"I don't think it'd help his cause to have his gay sister and her wife beside him at political events." Madison replies, "consider me not going me helping his cause."

"The vote is tomorrow, just in the rare case you change your mind." Polly says.

"Tommy accepted my decision, he seems to understand that I want to protect my family, why can't you?" Madison questions.

"You've always said that you'll stand with the family, the majority has voted that this is the direction we're taking and now you're refusing to be seen at the events." Polly responds.

"I am standing with my family." Madi states, "I've got a wife and a kid now, Pol. They matter more to me than any fucking business venture."

Madison knew she was about to make a low blow, but she needed to get her point across, "they can take Hugo away from us, they will. It is not legal for us to be married, let alone have a child. I don't want my son taken away, surely you get that."

"Tommy wouldn't let him be taken away."

"You don't know that!" Madi exclaims, "we can't rely on Tommy for everything! Tommy can't stop everything, and as much as I hate to admit it, neither can I. We know this, after trying multiple routes to get me out of prison, I was still stuck in that place, we can't control everything. We don't have power over everything."

"Pol, respect my decision and stop pushing me." Madison states, raising from her seat, "I'm not having this conversation with you again."

-

"He won," Chloe tells Madison, walking into the kitchen, "by a landslide, nobody came close."

"When Thomas Shelby is involved that tends to be the case." Madi hums, staring at the wall.

"Are you going to congratulate him?" Chloe asks.

"Do you think politics is the right decision?" Madi queries, turning to look at her wife, "do you think in the end the good will outweigh the bad?"

"I don't know, Mads," Chloe sighs, "but I know that your brother is very good about keeping his options open, and weighing them up. He'll have thought through every possibility."

"There'll be things he hasn't planned for, there always is." Madison states, "politics is a touchy realm, you have to know how to play your cards, and you have to be sure everyone around you, plays to your hand."

"If it's like playing cards, lets just be grateful that Ash isn't in charge, eh?" Chloe jokes, making Madison snort.

"You can't protect us from the world, they'll find out, everything comes out eventually." Chloe states, settling herself in Madisons lap, "you don't need to worry about us so much, we'll be okay, we always are."

"I hate politics." Madison says, "it's a game of lies, and of old, white, straight men dictating everyone else lives based on their preferences. They have no emotions, they don't care whose life they ruin so long as they get richer."

"I get it's prickly, but we're involved now. We can't hide from that, we're Shelbys, we can't escape that." Chloe replies, "I can tell you're thinking of the worst case scenarios."

"I feel like we're going down a road that not everyone is going to get to the end of." Madison says.

"Every road we've gone down been has been dangerous," Chloe points out.

"I don't know how to explain it - this just feels different and I can't understand it and it's stressing me out." Madison groans, wrapping her arms around Chloe's waist, and resting her head against her shoulder.

"It's not something we're used to." Madison whispers, "drugs? Yes. Guns? Yes. Robbery? Yes. Betting? Yes. We've done all of that, it's all we've done most of our lives. This is different, it's new."

"You don't like change." Chloe states, softly running her hand through Madisons hair.

"Does anyone?"

"Change is inevitable, hun." Chloe replies.

"Your smell is intoxicating," Madison mumbles, having had enough of the conversation.

"Now I know what to wear whenever I want you to do something for me." Chloe teases.

"All you have to do is ask and I'll do it," Madi replies, "anything you fucking want done, I'll do it."

"That's a very dangerous thing to say," Chloe says, as Madison leans back in her chair, one hand resting on Chloe's waist, the other on her jaw, caressing her lower lip, "I'm a very dangerous person, my love."

"Oh, I'm aware," Chloe says, "is it bad that it turns me on?"

"No, not bad whatsoever." Madison replies, pressing their lips together, smirking against Chloe's lips when she feels the red head grind against her lap.