Edith is born - 1909
All five Shelby siblings gather in the doorway of their parents room, peeking in at their mother sat up in bed with their new baby sister in her arms. Mary looks up, meeting the eyes of each of her children as she lifts a hand to motion them in, pressing her finger to her lips, silently reminding them to stay quiet as they step inside.
"She's fucking tiny." Arthur states, carefully taking baby Edith out of his mother's arms; the tiny girl had only been born a few hours, Polly keeping the rest of the Shelby children out of the house until Mary had rested and was up for visitors.
"Arthur. Language." His mother scolds, shaking her head with a frown.
"Eh, I've sworn in front of them all. They all turned out fine." Arthur mutters, motioning to his other younger siblings.
"Um, look at Finn." Ada states, pointing to the little boy who was sat at the end of the bed, attempting to shove his foot into his mouth.
"Oi. No. Come on now." Tommy groans, pulling Finn's foot out of his mouth, earning a squawk of protest from the toddler.
"Come 'ere, Finny." Mary coos, wiggling her fingers at Finn who smiles up at his mum, crawling up the bed and into her arms.
"Let me take him, ma. You need to rest." Ada says, moving to take Finn out of her arms, pausing at the shake of her head from her mother.
"I'm fine." She replies, pressing a kiss to Finn's head. "He's an angel. We'll be ok having a cuddle, eh Finny?"
"What's her name, ma?" John asks, softly running a finger over the baby's tiny head.
"Edith Mary." Their mother replies, reaching up to cup the back of Edith's head with her hand.
"Can I hold her?" Ada asks quietly, holding her hands out to Arthur who carefully slides the sleeping baby into her arms. "I can't believe I have a sister." She breathes out with a wide smile, dropping her head to press a feather light kiss to the baby's forehead.
"You girls will have to look out for each other." Mary says, reaching up to lay her hand gently over Ada's.
"We will." She assures her mother before passing baby Edith off to John who gently cradles her in his arms.
"What do you think, John Boy? A future fighter too? Look at those fists, eh?" Arthur exclaims, clapping John on the shoulder; John narrows his eyes at his brother, turning his body away, tucking his hand around Edith's head to protect her.
"Jesus, Arthur." He hisses, moving closer to Tommy at the end of the bed as Arthur rolls his eyes, scoffing at his younger brother. Mary meets John's eyes, giving him a gentle smile as he blushes slightly, ducking his head to look down at Edith.
"What do you think, Johnny?" She calls softly, John lifting his head again to meet her eye with a smile.
"She's perfect." He whispers, dropping his head to press a kiss to her forehead.
"Give her here then." Tommy says teasingly, holding his hands out for Edith, John reluctantly passing the baby off to his older brother. "Can't have John Boy hogging you all the time, can we?" He continues, looking down at Edith as John rolls his eyes playfully, reaching over to cup Edith's head again, rubbing his thumb over the top of her head.
—
Peering through the open doorway between the kitchen and the living room, John leans forward in his chair, straining his eyes to watch the shadows on the wall as he hears Edith stir in her bassinet by the fireplace. Easing himself up from his chair, he listens out for his mother making her way back downstairs to settle the baby, but hearing no movement, he quietly makes his way to the next room, pausing in the doorway to watch Edith from afar. Hearing her stir again, letting out a tiny cry, John steps into the room, reaching down into the bassinet to lift his baby sister into his arms.
"Hey, you're ok." He whispers softly, tucking her tiny body against his as he rocks her gently, moving to stand closer to the warmth of the fire. "Hi Edith," he coos, brushing a finger softly down her nose, dropping his head to press a kiss to her forehead. "I'm your big brother John."
"John?" Mary calls softly from the doorway, making John jump, turning to face her with a guilty look on his face.
"She was awake. Promise." He assures her, glancing down at baby Edith in his arms, her eyes wide as she looks up at her big brother. "She was fussin'. And I know Pol said to leave her be, but I couldn't watch her cry so I-"
"John." Mary cuts him off softly with a smile, holding her hand up to silence him. "It's ok."
"I don't remember Ada being this tiny." John states, looking back up at Mary who nods, stepping towards the two siblings.
"No, Edith's definitely the smallest of all of you." She agrees, settling on to the sofa, patting the space beside her for John to take. He slowly makes his way over, carefully lowering himself to sit beside his mother, baby Edith still tucked tightly to his chest. "She looks just like you did when you were a baby."
"Yeah?" John questions, head snapping up to meet Mary's eye with a smile as she nods. "Martha's gonna love her."
"Martha loves everything," Mary teases lightly, reaching up to pat John's cheek. "That girl never stops smiling."
"That's true." John replies with a laugh, nodding his head. "Still. She loves babies."
"Don't you go giving me grandbabies yet John Shelby, or so help me God-"
"Ma, relax!" John laughs, shaking his head as Mary lets out a long breath. Tucking his finger gently against Edith's, John smiles as she wraps her tiny hand around it, running his thumb over the back of her tiny hand. "I'll look after her, Ma. I promise."
"I know you will." Mary whispers, pressing a kiss to John's temple. "I know."