Disclaimer: I do not own anything Peaky Blinder related, that belongs to the series creator Steven Knight.

Chapter Twenty: Welcome Home.

Four years. The war had taken four years of his life and Thomas Shelby wasn't even sure that he was relieved to be home; he had dreamt of this moment for so long at the beginning but now he felt so unsure.

Around him on the train platform, people cheered for those who were returning home and the mood was joyful that so many were finally returning after being gone for over four years. His eyes scanned the gathering of people trying to find anyone that he recognised, he nodded to the men that he had fought alongside as he passed them pleased to see that they had been reunited with their families.

He came to a stop as his eyes came upon the sight of his aunt, he stared at her unable to believe that she was standing just a few feet from him; he tightened his grip on his bag before he walked towards her. Tears filled Polly's eyes as she stared at him, she moved through the crowd towards him and threw her arms around him; she held him close as she tried to hold back her tears.

John and Arthur had arrived back days ago, and Polly couldn't believe that all her boys were coming home safely; there had been so many boys from their street that wouldn't be coming home to their families and their bodies remained in France. Closing his eyes, Thomas allowed himself a moment of weakness and he knew that the war had changed so much for him; he had missed so much, and he would never gain that time back. When he opened his eyes, he felt his breath catch in his throat as he saw who was standing behind Polly; he was in awe of what he was seeing.

"Tommy," Rosemary whispered softly, a small smile on her lips as she stared at her husband; she almost couldn't believe that he was finally standing before her after all these years. She had kept all the letters that he had sent her while he had been away, and she couldn't believe that he was finally coming home to her; she had prayed for this for so long.

Polly smiled as she slowly released Tommy, she turned to look at Rosemary knowing that this was a moment that they had only ever imagined; she didn't have to guess why Thomas had fallen so silent. His eyes were firmly locked on the little girl that was balanced on Rosemary's hip, who shared his blue eyes and was fair-haired like her mother had been as a child.

"Say hello to daddy," Rosemary cooed softly to the little girl, she had never thought that this day would come, and she knew that no number of letters could make up for the time that Thomas had been gone. She slowly approached her husband, who stood frozen as he stared at them; she could only imagine what was going on in his mind right now.

The little girl peered up at Thomas, her blue eyes just as piercing as his own and with that one look Thomas knew that he was completely wrapped around her little figure. She was everything that he had imagined and more, he had never thought that he would come home to this and he dropped his bag when Rosemary started to hand her over. Peeking up at the man that her mother had called her father, the little girl tilted her head and reached out to poke his nose; a small smile filling her face as she did so.

"Hello Kathleen," Thomas whispered holding her close, she was perfect, and he couldn't believe that she was his; she was a little angel and he knew that he would do anything for her. Rosemary stood back and smiled at the scene before her, she ignored the nagging feeling that settled in her stomach; she could worry about that later, right now she was just happy that Thomas was home and safe.

Stepping into their home, Thomas was surprised how little had changed since he had left to go away to war; it was almost like he had never left, and he was amazed that it had managed to stay that way. Rosemary followed him into their home, she had done her best to keep things just as he had left them; she had done her best to maintain their home and make sure it was suitable for Kathleen.

Their daughter was everything that she could have dreamed of, she was thrilled that Thomas finally got to meet her, and she would do anything to make sure that he was comfortable here. Of course, Polly had wrangled a promise that they would have dinner with her and the rest of the family; she wanted everyone together as soon as possible.

"I should settle her down for her nap," Rosemary murmured shifting Kathleen on her hip, it had been a very exciting morning and she was starting to fall asleep. She headed upstairs leaving Thomas to linger, he watched her go and sighed to himself before moving into the living room; his eyes taking in the place that he had called home.

His eyes taking in every part of the place that he called home, it didn't feel the same anymore and he was surprised just how much had remained the same while he was gone. A frown starting to form on his face as he thought about how Rosemary must have coped in the years that he had been gone; he had never thought that he would be gone so long.

Taking in the living room, Thomas frowned to himself; he wanted better for Rosemary and Kathleen, they deserved better than the shit-hole that they called home. He had spent four years of his life fighting for King and country to come home to find his family barely making ends meet; it angered him that they had been forced to deal with this.

He had made a promise, a promise that he would take care of Rosemary and Kathleen and he intended to keep it; he was going to make sure that they were given the best and he would change their fortunes. The sound of Rosemary coming back down the stairs snapped Thomas from his thoughts, he moved to the door way and watched her; she was even more beautiful than he remembered. His memory certainly didn't her justice and he was determined to prove that he was more than worthy of her; he moved towards her knowing that nothing would take him away from her or Kathleen again.

"I have missed you," Rosemary whispered, she felt tears build in her eyes and she had worried that he wouldn't come back to her. There had been times that she was convinced that she would get a knock at the door and it would be someone arriving to tell her that Thomas had been killed; the idea of him not coming back had scared her. Stepping forward, Thomas wrapped his arms around Rosemary and held her close; it had been a long war and so many good men had died.

"I worried that I would lose you as well," Rosemary mumbled into his shirt, her fingers clutching at it as the first few tears escaped; she clutched at him knowing that she could have lost him as well as her father. The last couple of years had been difficult and Rosemary was thankful that she hadn't faced it alone; she buried her face into his neck just happy to hold him.

Thomas didn't reply, he didn't want to tell her how close he had come to losing his life in the past four years; he was here now and he was going to give her the best life that he could. Robert was gone and had left his family behind, Thomas had no plans of doing the same anytime soon and he hoped that he would be able to keep his promise.

There was no way that he was going to allow his wife and children to live a life like he had done growing up; he wanted better for them.

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