Oceans [A.Shelby]

TWENTY-ONE

Lillian glared up at her brother as she roughly shoved bandages over his leg, Theo wincing and cursing at his younger sister.

"A little gentler, Lil," Theo told her, Lillian clenching her jaw in response.

"I told you, you didn't listen!" Lillian's voice raised.

"Neither did Arthur!" Theo defended himself.

"Yes but Arthur didn't get fucking shot did he!" Lillian shouted, the others across the Garrison quieting down as they heard the siblings quarrel, John shooting Arthur a look that read 'you're in for it'.

"You would think-" Lillian paused to douse the wound in alcohol, "that after going missing for a couple years you would have more respect for your life, for the people who care about you!"

Once Lillian had made sure to wrap it up tightly, she glanced down at the blood on her hands before pouring the rest of the alcohol over her hands and wiping them on spare bandages.

She shook her head at her older brother, "what are they going to say when we turn up at the estate and you're limping because you've had a bullet in your leg?"

"I say they'll be too distracted by the appearance of their son in law," Theo retorted, Lillian rolling her eyes at her brother before pulling him up and telling him to walk on his leg. He did so, but rather stiff and fearful of falling back down.

Lillian walked behind the bar, glancing at the shelves to find the strongest, pouring some out to him, "that'll help with the pain,"

"Yeah, an' it'll knock him out in an hour," Arthur told her.

"Is that such a bad thing?" Lillian asked her husband innocently, who gave her  a pointed glance before swapping his glass for something else.

"I know you're angry-" Arthur began, but Lillian interrupted him "angry is the understatement of the decade,"

"and to make it up to me you have no choice but to come to endure my parents at the estate next week," Lillian told him, a groan escaping Arthur's lips.

"We'll pack some of this for the journey won't we Arthur," Theo pointed to the drink his sister tried to knock down him.

"You'll need a lot of it," Lillian muttered as the group, the Shelby's, their comrades in arms and their families drank to the night. They drank to the night and drank to Danny Whizzbang, who died, much like Arthur came close to, for the third time.

"Oi, you!" Finn received a sharp smack around the head as Lillian caught him trying to sneak a drink from the bar.

"Come on Arthur," Finn whined, his oldest brother almost giving in before Arthur too received a smack over the head, Lillian having to reminding him that he's only 11.

Arthur watched his wife serve drinks, a smile came to her lips as she felt his arms around her waist, "what is it now, Arth?"

"You should do this more often," Arthur muttered in her ear.

"What, serve a few drinks to already drunk men?" Lillian's words were teasing.

"And then every night, when the pubs closed I can have my way," Lillian couldn't hide the small blush that came to her cheeks.

"You don't need a pub to have your way with me, trouble," She told him before Arthur made a few dirty promises in her ear, and Lillian hoped her brother would pass out from alcohol before he would even make it home.

Anger and all other feelings were forgotten for the night, despite death hanging over them, the night seemed closer to normal than it had been before the war.