#And say he ever did try to join the ada I don't think he'd pass the exam anyways

[im-a-chunky-potato]

Ooh question! Do you think in any circumstance Nikolai would ever be able to survive in the light (doing good or working at the ada)?

[themultifandomgal]

John Shelby- Dancing

1 Year Old:

Music is heard throughout the house as Martha sits on the floor with her daughter in front of her

"Come on" Martha calls trying to encourage YN to walk over to her "YN, come on sweetheart, you gonna show your uncles you can walk?" the little girl just giggles crawling to her mum "I swear she walked this morning" Martha sighs in defeat hugging YN close. Tommy walks over to the little girl and helps her up on to her feet

"You gonna walk?" he asks letting her go watching her fall hitting her bottom on the floor. Finn the youngest Shelby brother at 3 years old starts laughing

"Come on YN I'll show you" he says holding her hand as she wobbly stands with the help off her mother "walk" he takes some steps with her then let's go of her hand. As YN gets more confident her speed picks up and she throws herself at Arthur. He picks her up and bounces her in his arms

"She walked!" he shouts excitedly as everyone else starts clapping and cheering while YN giggles in her uncles arms. He spins her around dancing with her in his arms. This was the start of YN's love of music and dancing.

8 Years Old:

YN's father and uncles finally return from war and end up at the garrison drinking. YN still loves music, always dancing which is what she has been doing all day

"Daddy please?" YN asks begging her father to dance with her

"No now YN" John sighs missing his late wife who passes away not that long ago. YN pouts, but her uncle Tommy steps in

"I'll dance with you. Come on" Tommy finishes his drink and stands up turning the record player up. YN wraps her arms around her uncles waist, standing on his feet.

16 Years Old:

After her first heartbreak she would of course go to her uncles about it. That's when Arthur suggests that they go to the garrison to have a drink and try to cheer YN up

"Ok then what happened?" Finn asks lifting his drink to take a sip

"He walked off laughing" YN says upset

"I'll fucking kill him" John grumbles. Esme, YNs stepmum tries to calm down her husband

"It's fine dad"

"YN he was your first love, it's ok to feel sad" Ada says hugging her niece

"I've got an idea" Grace smiles from behind the bar. She walks over to record player and start to play the record that's already on there "up you get"

"What are you doing Grace?" YN huffs not in the mood

"Your not sitting her drinking yourself silly" Grace pulls YN up and starts to dance "your not going to cry over him, your going to celebrate"

"Grace I'm really not in the mood"

"You know what Grace has a point. Come on YN" Esme says standing up joining YN and Grace

"Fine" YN sighs giving in and smiling slightly at her step mum.

As the even goes on and on, YN's dad and her uncles get quiet tipsy. Grace has changed the record many times and now YN is dancing with her uncles all laughing. It's the first time since the war that everyone was seen smiling and forgetting about the world around them.

21 Years Old:

YN's wedding was a bitter sweet day. She married the love of her life, but was missing her mum, dad and aunt Polly. Arthur was the one to walk her down the aisle while Tommy had the typical father daughter dance with his niece

"Thank you for today. It was perfect"

"Ya mum, dad and Poll would haunt me if I let anything go wrong" this makes YN chuckle

"I miss them"

"I know, but today is a day of celebration. To get drunk and dance the night away"

And that's what they did. YN got to dance with Tommy, Arthur and Finn, all her uncles tipsy

"You know we will kill 'im if he ever hurts you"

"I know Finn" YN laughs with her uncle "I don't think he'd do anything. Think he's to scared to even upset me"

"Good"

23 Years Old:

"Come on Harry" YN encourages her son who's just over a year old "you gonna walk for us?" but in response Harry babbles clapping his hands

"Music got you walking when you were his age" Arthur comments walking over to the record playing, turning it on

"Come on little man" Tommy pulls Harry up to his feet "maybe you want dance"

"You as well come on" Finn pulls YN up as music starts blaring through the house.

The house fills with laughs, dancing and cheers when Harry takes his first steps.

[hughiecampbelle]

Being The Smartest Shelby Would Include:

Polly knew you were smart from the start

She said so when you were a baby, but of course no one believed her

Everyone thought their kids were special, but you really were

Born just a few years before Finn, you weren't the baby, but you definitely weren't the oldest, so it was hard to be taken seriously

It started with your homework

You spent a lot of nights trying to tell your siblings it was just too easy

You weren't just getting every answer right, you were finishing pages of work in minutes, faster than anyone in your class

Eventually, you moved on to your brothers work

Finding it discarded on the table, you recognized Johns scraggly handwriting

He'd only made it halfway through, so you decided to finish it, even fixing some of his mistakes along the way

You wanted to show them what you'd done, but of course no one listened

At least, not until you stood on your chair and demanded that someone look over your work

It was a bit dramatic, and made for an embarassing story later, but you wanted to be heard

They did, finally, and they were shocked

Tommy handed it to John, who passed to Ada, skipping over Arthur, who eventually got it to Polly

"Well?"

"It's right, all of it. . . ."

"Fuck."

It wasn't just math though. You were reading every book you could find, even the ones your siblings struggled to get through

You had a knack for puzzles, for figuring things out no one else could, able to pull things apart and put them together just in your head

Polly knew, and she was going to do something about it

Anything she could find to keep you entertained, occupied, your mind at work, she'd bring it home

You had an incredible memory too, remembering everything from the contents on the back of bottles you brothers drank from to entire speeches Polly gave when all of you were misbehaving

It was amazing, to say the least

You were a kid when your brothers went off to war, so it was mostly Ada and Polly who spent long nights with you at the table over homework

You didn't think it was fair, that you were forced to stay in school when none of your siblings were

Polly called it a gift, said you shouldn't take it for granted

She had big plans for you, the kind of career kids like you could only dream of

Finn grows up with you reading to him every night

Even helping him with schoolwork, though that didn't last very long

It still irks you Polly let's Finn drop school, not even getting past reading himself, but you know better than to push the subject

By the time your brothers come back, thankfully all in one piece, you've become a bit of a myth or legend around the Small Heath

Not only are you taller and with more acne, a young teenager, you've made a name for yourself, and a business

After school you could be found with a hat on the ground, getting pocket change for your "abilities"

Showing off and splitting the money with friends, you put on shows

Memorizing the faces of strangers, drawing them almost perfectly by hand, reciting lines of poetry from class all from memory, etc.

Sometimes you bring Finn along, promising candy for his silence, making him part of the act

Your favorite is showing off the languages you've lesrned, switching between Romani, French, Italian, and German (to name a few) without a second thought, so effortlessly

Arthur caught you once, but instead of saying anything, he simply cheered you on, laughing at the fact that your business was doing better than the familys

You spent a lot of time in the shop like Finn, growing up there, but never really allowed in on business, not even to listen

Instead you were ordered to be quiet and focus on your studies

And you did, for a few years, slipping notes to John about what you thought would improve business, pressing your ear to the door to listen, putting up with being categorized as "one of the kids" with Finn

And then you made an announcement, one that almost killed Polly

You weren't going to university, and instead you'd be joining the family business

Your aunt put up a good fight, but your brothers were more than happy to welcome you, with rules of course

Ada wasn't too thrilled either, knowing how smart you were, and how special it was, but she wasn't going to stop you

Pol was, or at least she was going to try

"You could be anything you want y/n."

"And I choose this."

"You're-"

"Wasting my potential? So you've said."

You'd be more behind the scenes, working on the business side rather than the side with razors and guns

Your brothers were more than happy to hear that, though you'd gotten more than a few comments muttered by Pol

If you really wanted to, you could always be a doctor or a lawyer later in life, for now this is what you wanted most

You were finally part of your family

Within the first week, you have a full list of what could be improved and you're center stage in the family meeting

To say that was nerve wrecking was an understatement

Tommy had his doubts, of course, but John knew you'd been keeping their heads above water for a long time

"Go on then, you've got our attention."

You were the one they went to check over the books, the numbers, catching mistakes no one else did

It wasn't just spelling mistakes or addition issues, you were taking stock in inventory, in all the bullets that were wasted, the little things that went missing that no one seemed to notice

It didn't take long for you to work your way up, prove yourself not only to Tommy, but Pol too, showing her this wasn't a waste of your time

She's still not thrilled, but you're as stubborn as the rest, and she knows it's a losing battle

At least you're being smart with your work

Tommy made you check over every contract and agreement he made, making sure he didn't miss a single detail that would screw them over

He brought you to the races too, working out probability, though your math was shaky at best under that kind of pressure and uncertainty

You were the one counting the profits and losses too, weighing the options of whether or not to invest

You're really the only one who knows just how much the family makes

That is a dangerous thing in itself

You make friends quite easily

Not only can you speak an array of languages, bonding with everyone, but you've got that Shelby charm and good looks, too

You're quite popular, though your brothers constantly get in the way of any potential relationship

You're smart though, and not just for their gain, but yours too

If and when you're ready to date, you'll find a way

Alfie adores you

Tommy drives him mad, but he'd have you over any day

Not only does he love the fact that you can keep up with him, witty beyond belief, but your Hebrew is perfect

"So, you're the brains behind the whole operation?"

"Something like that."

You're brought along to a lot of in person deals

You pick up on things no one else does, remembering the littlest of things that can and will be weaponized if need be

Their kids and spouses names, the way they look at you, how they speak and carry themselves

It doesn't take long for you to know exactly who they are

"They're lying Tom. I know they are."

"How can you tell?"

"They look away when they answer, their eye twitches, and they always lean forward when they're saying something true."

"You got all that from a five minute conversation?"

You're not only their beloved little sibling, but the perfect weapon

They don't teach you how to use a gun, but you've been watching for years, making note of every tiny detail

When you do use a gun, which is inevitable, it's a perfect shot

Arthur and Tom insist you carry something with you, but you're fine sticking with a simple razor

The guns can stay with them. . . .

Not only does it come in handy with work, but your family, too

You pick up on the way Arthur escalates, talking him down before there's a full outburst

You know the nights Tommy does and doesn't sleep just by the sound of his voice, the way he signs his name

You know when to check up on Ada if she's not doing well after Freddies gone, even if no one else can see the hurt in her eyes

That's the thing everyone seems to forget, is that you're not only book smart, but people smart, too

Constantly making fun of your siblings right in front of them

"Pol, y/n's making fun of me!"

"I am not! You don't even speak Russian."

"No, but I can guess."

He'd never admit it to you, but Finn really is amazed by you

Ever since he was a kid he always looked up to you

School and homework and all that never came easy to him, and it lead to him giving up, so the fact that all of this comes so easy makes him proud to be your brother

"Y/n, curse in a language we all know or don't say it all."

Along with learning weapons along the way, you pick up on how to be a nurse, tending to whatever it needed

From your nieces and nephews scraped knees to bullet wounds

"Do not get blood on my new shirt!"

No one really suspects you to be listening or watching the way you do, so when they need it, you go "undercover"

Gaining the trust of the enemy, pretending to be a stranger that just so happens to get their attention as if you hadn't been figuring out what makes them tick, distracting them with drinks and small talk

If anything goes wrong, you picked up on how to get away, how to fight without getting too much attention, and not just by watching

With a memory like yours, there are some things you'd like to forget and can't

A lot of things do leave you with nightmares, with flashes of panic, with this dreadful feeling in your gut like you'd seen it all before

At one point or another you've called your siblings and aunt in the middle of the night, just to check up on them, see if they're okay

Begging your brothers to be more careful

They rarely ever listen though

"Is there anything you can't do?"

"I can't go on a date."

"Nope, not until you're forty."

"Come on Arthur, you can't scare them all away."

Despite all this, you're still treated like a child

Your siblings still see you as that smart little kid correcting their work and growing bored of even the most complicated things

No matter what you do or say, you'll always be small in their eyes