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𝙇𝙀𝙊𝙉𝙄𝙀 𝘾𝘼𝙉'𝙏 𝙍𝙀𝙈𝙀𝙈𝘽𝙀𝙍 when it was that she first started having feelings for Finn Shelby. Perhaps it was the day he showed up at her doorstep with a fresh lily he picked in the meadow when they were six, or the day he gave her some money to get ice cream when they were eight. Regardless, all her childhood memories contained Finn, he was always there.
That is, besides the years Leonie spent in France. Leonie's father was French. He was kind and caring. When he fell for Leonie's mother, a gypsy native to Birmingham, on his visit to London, his parents were the least bit pleased. The Dupont family name was one of influence, and affluence.
Unfortunately, Leonie's father's kindness led to his demise. He died trying to protect a young woman being threatened by a violent man on his train ride back home from a visit to London. The man shot him for interfering. Leonie was only ten. Her grandparents later insisted on her return to their home in a French suburb outside of Paris, where she would attend a prestigious girls' school and learn to be a respectable lady. "Filthy Birmingham, with all its death and violence, is no place for a young lady," said her grandmère.
Leonie's brothers, Louis and Olivier, we're not as "lucky". The Duponts were close with the Shelby family. They lived right next door, and Leonie's mother, Margaret, had grown up with Arthur Shelby senior, the father of the feared Shelby brothers. Margaret's brother was best friends with Arthur, so naturally, she became close with Polly Shelby. They are still best friends to this day. However, this connection along with the death of their father led the boys to join the Peaky Blinders when Louis was thirteen, and Oliver just twelve.
They used to be sweet boys, but the death of their father struck a nerve. A nerve that made them realize the violence and cruelty of this world. Perhaps joining a gang would give them the power to be on the right side of the gun, so just maybe they wouldn't end up like their father.
But Leonie had grown into a mature young lady, at the age of sixteen. She insisted that she'd have more control over her life.
Grandmère was disgusted by the idea of her returning to the filthy city, and Grandpère would miss her dinner time jokes and charisma. Although her mother missed her, she did want better for her daughter. She knew she couldn't provide for her like her wealthy grandparents could. She couldn't send her to a prestigious school, or buy her fancy clothes. But what she could give is love. Leonie's grandparents loved her, but in their own way, no where close to the love her mother showed.
But in the end, after over five years away from home, it was time for Leonie to return. Even if it was to polluted air, muddy streets, and a house without her dad. It was her home, and it was where Finn is.
