Disclaimer: I do not own anything Peaky Blinder related, that belongs to the series creator Steven Knight.
Face Claim for Rosemary Parker: Celina Sinden.
Chapter Three: The World Turned Upside-Down.
Rosemary stared down at the morning paper and frowned at the headlines that stared back at her, it did not make any sense and she feared just what this meant for those she loved. The news had come swiftly, and everything seemed to be spiralling out of control; the entire continent was erupting into war and nothing seemed to be able to stop it. It had only been a few weeks ago that the news of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife had been filling the papers, now all there seemed to be filled with declarations of war.
"Would you stop staring at that thing, the news isn't going to change," Lily snapped walking past Rosemary, they were meant to be working and staring at the morning headlines were not going to change what had been decided by the government. They would need to get a move on if they were going to get their workloads completed by the end of the day; it should be enough to distract them all from what was happening outside of the store.
"This is crazy… I can't remember the last big war like this," Katherine whispered peeking over Rosemary's shoulder at the newspaper, it was scary and there was no way to ignore what was happening. Already there were calls for young men to enlist in the army and it was not going to stop there; they were even saying that the war should be over by Christmas and many believed that it would be.
Setting down the paper, Rosemary tried to think back to the last time there had been such a war like this; she could not think of one and she worried just who might end up being dragged into such a war. To any young man around here, war would seem glamorous and away to make themselves a name so that they might improve things when they came home.
"So many young men that won't return home…" Mary murmured shaking her head, her father had died during the Boxer Rebellion and she doubted that this war would be any easier in its death toll. There was silence at her words and her three friends knew that she was right, there were so many that would not return, and things did not look like they were going to get better quickly from what the papers were saying.
Rosemary swallowed at the thought, she didn't want to even consider what that would mean for Arthur, Thomas, and John would jump at the chance to fight in a war; they would want to protect and serve their country. The three of them would be more than willing to put their lives on the line, they showed no fear in what they did and Rosemary feared for them; she did not want to even consider what would happen if they signed up.
It would break her heart if anything happened to them, she adored the Shelby family and she did not think they would recover if anything happened to the eldest three boys. Shaking her head, Rosemary tried not to think about what she would do if Thomas did not make it; she adored him the most and she could see a future with him even if her parents did not approve.
Her father would likely be called into action as well and Rosemary had heard that they were looking for nurses and other people that could aid the armies during the battles to come. Colleen had made mention of such things, although she was focused on her pregnancy at this time and had stated that if it weren't for her pregnancy then she might have considered signing up as a nurse.
"We should get some work done," Mary insisted not wanting to fall behind, she wondered how business would be affected with men going off to war and there were likely to be quite a few weddings in their neighbourhood. Young couples wanting to get married before the men were shipped off to fight in a war that many people would not come back from.
It was going to be a busy time and Mary didn't want to consider what would become of her business if things didn't sort themselves out quickly. Rosemary nodded her head and headed back to her work station, she did not want to fall further behind when she had plans with Thomas that evening.
It was not going to be easy and she knew that thoughts of the war across the English Channel would not be easily ignored for long, it was only a matter of time before the war was on their doorstep and could not be ignored anymore. Rosemary prayed that the government was right, that the war would be done by Christmas and everyone would come home.
Barely listening to Arthur as he gave orders, Thomas stared at the letter that sat in front of him knowing that he should have seen that coming; the news had only just come that England would enter the war and now this. He had never thought that things were going to happen like this and the fact that they were already calling men into action was worrying but there was not anything that could be done about it.
Looking up from where he was sat, Thomas eyed the men that worked around him knowing that many of them including himself would be enlisted for his war and sent across the Channel to fight. This time, it was just Arthur that had been called for and that did not stop him from worrying about his hot-headed brother who would be leaving in a matter of days. Arthur had not said much since he had gotten his deployment orders that morning, he instead focused on the family business which would be left in Thomas's hands while he was gone unless Thomas also found himself enlisted.
"You shouldn't worry so much," Aunt Polly insisted stopping beside Thomas and looking down at the letter in his hands in distain; she was not happy about this but there was nothing she could do. If Arthur was being called to war, then there was nothing that they could say or do that would stop him from going especially when remaining would see him deemed a coward by those around them. The Order of the White Feather had been set up to aimed to shame men into enlisting in the British army by persuading women to present them with a white feather if they were not wearing a uniform.
"Better too much, then not at all," Thomas muttered placing down the letter, he did not like this, and he imagined that it would not be long before he was going to be in the same situation. His thoughts drifted to Rosemary knowing that it was not going to be an easy conversation to have with her; he could not imagine going away to war and leaving her behind.
He was sure that her parents would use it as a perfect opportunity to try and set her up with a man who they deemed much more suitable for her than he was before they all disappeared off to war. Not that many decent men would be staying back at Small Heath, anyone worth their weight in gold would do the right thing and fight for their King and country.
"It could be you next," Aunt Polly mused, she did not like the idea at all but it would happen, and there was just one question that Thomas had to consider when it came down to it. Rosemary was a lovely girl and if Thomas went off to war, Polly had truly little doubts that if he did make it back alive that she would still want him. She would not put it past Victoria to attempt set Rosemary up with some nice officer or someone of fine standing that she deemed a better match for her eldest daughter than Thomas Shelby.
"What exactly do you want be to do about that?" Thomas asked leaning back in his seat, he raised an eyebrow at his aunt waiting to hear what she had to say. He had an idea what Polly was suggesting and he did not blame her for thinking it, there would be many in the area if not across the country that would do the same thing and rush to marry before the men left the country.
Polly was silent for a moment before she took the seat next to him, her eyes looking across the room at his brothers doubting that they would interrupt them anytime soon. Arthur had not settled down himself, he did not seem interested right now in finding himself a good wife who would care for him when things went south.
Then there was John who had married Martha a couple of years ago, they seemed pretty settled in the life that they had together, it wasn't easy with three young children to consider. James, Steven, and Margaret were adorable and Polly knew how much trouble the three gave their mother especially when John was at work.
"Perhaps you and John have more in common than you and Arthur do," Polly replied simply, a small smile playing on her lips and she would not deny that she had not hoped for better for her nephew. Thomas deserved to be happy and he had found that with Rosemary, she kept him out of trouble for the most part and if they were to elope before Thomas was deployed then it was not like anyone would blame them with a war taking place around them and no one knowing who would make it back home.
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