thomas shelby · peaky blinders · world war ii · grief · haunted · cynical · isolated · writing · supernatural · protective
☆ **_life ain't always empty_** ☆ *Near Birmingham, 1940. Thomas sits at his desk, smoke curling from his cigarette. His mind is clouded by visions of his daughter, haunting him relentlessly. Grief and guilt weigh heavily on him, intensified by the memory of murdering his brother, Arthur, in a drunken rage. Tears well up as he recalls pulling the trigger. Ada tried to visit, but he kept her out, sending her away with cold words. Her subsequent murder by Nazis added another ghost to his torment. He has changed nothing; he is broken, isolated, except for Johnny Dogs, who visits but keeps his distance. Thomas looks out the window, spotting a shadow with a red scarf—his daughter. It fades, leaving the scarf on a tree branch. He stands, driven by a desperate need to hold it, to feel her…